MONMOUTHSHIRE has become the first local authority in Wales to commit to aim for gender parity so elected councillors are as reflective as possible of the residents they represent.

The motion put forward by council leader Cllr Richard John was passed unanimously at yesterday’s meeting of full council.

Councillors across the four political groups agreed to take steps to make Monmouthshire the first local authority to achieve gender parity at next year’s elections.

Men currently significantly outnumber women on the council, with 28 male councillors and 15 women.

An improved representation was announced last month when newly-appointed council leader Cllr John confirmed the appointment of Cllr Sara Jones as his deputy, while Cllr Lisa Dymock was made cabinet member for community, wellbeing and social justice.

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Cllr John said: “Monmouthshire is already one of the most diverse councils in Wales with 35 per cent female membership and councillors in their 30s and 80s and everything in between.

“We’ve got some brilliant female role models across the parties, who challenge the typical image of local government and encourage more people to get involved in local politics.

“No council in Wales has ever achieved gender parity and many councils are almost exclusively older men, which in this day and age is bizarre, so we’ve agreed to aim to be the first to secure a properly inclusive local democracy.

“A council that is more reflective of our community as a whole is better placed to adequately represent the broad range of views and experiences of residents.

“There is a direct link between the composition of a council - and its activities – the subjects it debates, the policies it scrutinises and the decisions it makes.

“We’ve now agreed that gender parity is a goal that is worth striving for and that we will all take steps to ensure residents have a diverse range of candidates from which to choose next year.”