MP Mhairi stars in exhibition

A landmark exhibition telling the story of women’s struggle for equal rights will feature Paisley politician Mhairi Black.

Voice and Vote: Women’s Place in Parliament features a video of the Paisley South and Renfrewshire South MP talking about what it is like to be a woman in British politics.

She says: “I became a Member of Parliament by accident to be honest.

“I started campaigning during the 2014 Independence Referendum and obviously we lost that Referendum but when we did, I thought to myself: I haven’t given up two years of my life campaigning and trying to fight for a better society just to be told to get back in the box and for nothing to change in Westminster.

“So I was encouraged to put my name forward and I did…and the rest is history as they say.

“I was very conscious that being a female candidate would inevitably make things harder for myself, I mean I know it’s already welldocumented the number of sexist misogynistic abuse that I receive and other female Members receive, and it’s purely for the fact that we’re women – a woman with an opinion.

“It’s quite astounding, but the flip side of that is the positive, is that at least we’re exposing it and at least we’re making people aware that that is not the norm.

“That the norm is that women are just as capable as anything that a man is..”

Voice and Vote: Women’s Place in Parliament, which is free in Westminster Hall, runs until October 6.

Book tickets at https:// www. parliament. uk/ getinvolved/ vote- 100/ voiceand-vote/