The Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality in the European Parliament: Taking Advantage of Institutional Power Play

Ahrens, Petra

doi:10.1093/pa/gsw005

Cited by 36 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…So far, such studies have generally been based on interviews with parliamentarians. They indicate that these bodies may add the perspective of gender equality to legislative bills (Sawer et al ; Ahrens ; Green ; Sawer & Turner ) and monitor government actions on gender equality (Holli & Harder ; Sawer & Turner ). Additionally, they describe how such bodies facilitate interaction between parliaments and women's movements (Grace ; Green ; Johnson & Josefsson ) and encourage specialization in gender equality (Costa ).…”

Section: Theoretical Perspectives and State Of The Artmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Impact of Parliamentary Design: The Case of the Danish Committee on Gender Equality

Harder

2017

Scand Pol Stud

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This article contributes to the literature on parliamentary design in general and the pioneer literature on parliamentary bodies specialized in gender equality in particular. It does so by establishing a frame for the critical assessment of the impacts of such an institutional design. Moreover, by using interviews and data on the behavior of committee members, it demonstrates the advantages of applying a mixed method within a field that has mostly relied on participant interviews. A systematic analysis of the impact of the Danish Committee on Gender Equality shows that although this particular committee has not succeeded in adding the perspective of gender equality to legislation, it has increased parliamentary control with the government. Furthermore, it has enabled much better interaction between parliament and civil society organizations.

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Section: Theoretical Perspectives and State Of The Artmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Impact of Parliamentary Design: The Case of the Danish Committee on Gender Equality

Harder

2017

Scand Pol Stud

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“…The EP obliged itself to implement gender mainstreaming and thus all committees should promote gender equality in their work (Ahrens, 2019c). Promoting gender equality and anti-discrimination are, however, predominantly treated in FEMM and LIBE, although FEMM often clashes with the Employment Committee (EMPL) about responsibilities (Ahrens, 2016). 2.…”

Section: Notesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The EP as an actor for gender equality has received limited attention (Ahrens & Rolandsen Agustín, 2019), with the exception of the activities of the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) (Ahrens, 2016;Nugent, 2019). The EP was traditionally a passive recipient of initiatives from the Commission and thus rather toothless.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adjusting venues and voices: populist and right-wing parties, the European Parliament and civil society equality organizations 2014–2019

Ahrens

Woodward

2020

European Politics and Society

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The European Parliament (EP) offers channels for policy input through committees, intragroups, and the commissioning of reports and studies. Civil society equality organizations (CSOs) promoting diversity, gender equality and sexual rights are among the actors using such channels. Today they experience severe cutbacks and direct attacks by populist and radical-right parties who increasingly gained electoral support in several member states. The trajectory on the supranational level is less clear. This article examines the question of whether the increase in populist and right-wing parties in the EP changed how supranational CSOs promoting (gender) equality used venues for making their voice heard in EP policy-making in the 2014-2019 legislature. We investigate the challenges to the relationships between the EP, its committees and political groups, and equality CSOs. Analysing documents and interviews with MEPs and CSOs, our findings show that in the changing political environment, CSOs have moved towards more informal channels of participation, thereby avoiding polarization and conflict and maintaining an effective presence on the political stage.

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“…Center-right Irish female MEPs referenced gender mainstreaming as an initiative that displaced the need for specific committee membership on women's rights: "Gender mainstreaming means that in all my work there is a gender element." Analysis suggests that a reliance on gender mainstreaming processes in the work of EP committees has delivered weak or variable outcomes at best (Ahrens 2016).…”

Section: Party Politics Ideology Irish Female Mep S and Women's Imentioning

confidence: 99%

Irish Female Members of the European Parliament: Critical Actors for Women's Interests?

Cullen

2018

Pol & Gen

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The European Parliament (EP) is credited as an important actor in improving the rights of women in Ireland. Lacking a power base in national political parties, Irish feminists and European Union (EU) officials, including members of the EP (MEPs), have worked to secure progress on gender equality. This research explores whether, in the contemporary context, Irish female MEPs remain critical actors for women's interests at the EU level. Findings show that although Irish female MEPs have a limited record of involvement with the EP's main site for gender equality, the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality, they do act in a variety of ways on women's interests. These include mobilization on gendered occupational roles and traditionally gendered areas such as care work, child poverty, and issues constructed as affecting women outside the EU. Irish female MEPs also facilitate forms of supranational lobbying in their support of EU-level advocacy for domestic gendered civil society and campaign groups. However, ideology and party political discipline, the pull toward local and national interests, and an absence of strong feminist agency work to diminish opportunities for female MEPs to act as critical actors and deliver critical acts on women's interests.

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The Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality in the European Parliament: Taking Advantage of Institutional Power Play

Cited by 36 publications

References 18 publications

Assessing the Impact of Parliamentary Design: The Case of the Danish Committee on Gender Equality

Assessing the Impact of Parliamentary Design: The Case of the Danish Committee on Gender Equality

Adjusting venues and voices: populist and right-wing parties, the European Parliament and civil society equality organizations 2014–2019

Irish Female Members of the European Parliament: Critical Actors for Women's Interests?

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