When it comes to politics, I certainly don't profess to have the solution for ‘broken Britain’. So, as a mother of two small boys, apart from a vested interest in building them a better future, what could I possibly bring to the parliamentary table?
Actually, motherhood has launched me into the centre of Britain's public services and infrastructure. Whilst pregnant I was given plenty of opportunity to experience and evaluate every aspect of the NHS: my local GP, two local hospitals, Health Visitors, and then, when they were a bit older, my local children's centres. I researched affordable childcare options, and have just completed a comprehensive study of our primary education system, having spent hours touring local schools for my son's application.
I also happen to be the main consumer in our house, in charge of everything from the supermarket shop to the gas bill. I - unlike some male MPs - know the cost of a pint of milk (and a packet of mince, and a tin of beans) across a variety of outlets, and I know what impact this government's economic policy has had on our household bills.
Motherhood, in short, has given me a crash course in all the things politicians generally have a strong hand in affecting, improving or reducing. Surely this makes me pretty well qualified to go forth and make my mark on the political landscape? I can't be the first mother to feel a political fire in their belly, so why isn't the House of Commons full of us? In fact, where are all the women?
There are currently a total of 650 MPs in parliament, and just 23% of these are female. Of these, only half have children. Just 12% of MPs are mothers, which leave us sorely under-represented and under-utilised. Business Secretary Vince Cable has been pressing for company boards to include more women because of the benefits it brings, so why is parliament still so unbalanced?
I was appalled when I watched MP Jenny Willott negotiating the back alleys of Westminster with her buggy in BBC2's recent documentary Inside the Commons – and the abuse she got on Twitter for daring to have kids whilst being a member of parliament. I was outraged, too, when Labour front bencher Rachel Reeves - who will become Work and Pensions Secretary should Labour win the general election - recently hit the headlines because she'd mentioned her post-election maternity leave, prompting a Tory MP to question her ability to give the job her 'full attention'. Couple these blatant displays of discrimination with the fact that female MPs experience twice the amount of media intrusion men do, and it's easy to see why there aren't women queuing up to ‘live the dream’ and work in politics.
I've no doubt that being an MP with small children is difficult, but what job isn't when you're struggling with the brain-crushing fatigue that comes with having preschoolers? Motherhood should not be used as an ‘excuse’ for the woeful under-representation of women in parliament, not least because the average age of an MP is 50 - a time when most parents' children will have a bit more independence. And of course, a man having children is not perceived to have any impact on his political career at all, except increased opportunity for cheesy, 'every man' photo ops.
On the issue of getting more women in parliament David Cameron has said "this is fantastically important… we need to do more, much more", and Ed Milliband seems to agree, saying "the reason representation matters is because it shapes the policies a government introduces and how they impact on women in the country". But the suffragette mantra of ‘Deeds not Words’ is still starkly applicable - we need politicians to take action on this, rather than just pay lip-service.
There are lots of things they could do, too: all women shortlists or quotas, job shares, twinning constituencies, or even or having two seat constituencies, where the voters elect one male and one female candidate to represent them. The Director of the Hansard Society Ruth Fox has suggested this issue is "too important to leave to the parties", and that there is a case for constitutionalising equal representation. There are viable options on the table, and we need to be seriously considering them.
To achieve parity we only need 177 more women MPs from a population of 32 million. If I could walk into the House of Commons with the 176 other women required to create an equal parliament, I would do it tomorrow. But in the meantime, I believe our best chance of getting this issue on the agenda is to sign the 50:50 campaign's petition. We're asking parliament to debate all the options for redressing the gender imbalance, and we'd love your support.