UK & World News
The latest UK & World news stories from the Press Association.
PM urges more women in boardrooms
01:05, Feb 9 2012
Britain's economic recovery is being held back by a lack of women in the boardroom, David Cameron has warned.
The Prime Minister said there was clear evidence that ending Britain's male-dominated business culture would improve performance. And he pledged to learn lessons from Nordic and Baltic countries as he joined eight of their leaders for a summit in the Swedish capital, Stockholm.
Securing promotion for women and encouraging female entrepreneurs is one of the two central themes of the Northern Future Forum. The annual gathering, launched by the UK last year in London, brings together governments from the nine countries with experts to discuss shared issues.
This year, the leaders will also discuss how to ensure workers can continue in employment until a later age amid fears over the rising cost of pensions.
Mr Cameron said: "The drive for more women in business is not simply about equal opportunity, it's about effectiveness.
"It's about quality, not just equality. That's why one of the things we'll be discussing in Sweden is what other countries are doing to help women become entrepreneurs and take up leading positions in business.
"Women now make up nearly half the workforce across Europe and the majority of university degrees. But they are still not sufficiently represented at the senior boardroom level.
"The evidence is that there is a positive link between women in leadership and business performance, so if we fail to unlock the potential of women in the labour market, we're not only failing those individuals, we're failing our whole economy.
"We're already helping women to set up and grow their own business in the UK. But the Nordic and Baltic countries are leading the way in Europe, with female representation on boards far above the EU average. So I want to get ideas in Stockholm that we can take back to London to explore if they could help us get more women into British boardrooms, boosting profits and contributing to the economic growth we all urgently need".
At present, just 15% of FTSE 100 directors are women. A Government-commissioned report last year said quotas should be imposed unless top firms acted to increase the number of women on their boards to at least one in four by 2015.
Pair set for child cruelty sentence 16:05, May 21 2012
A mother and stepfather who forced their 11-year-old son to live in a filthy converted coal-bunker have been put behind bars. more
Bomber kills 90 at military drill 15:05, May 21 2012
At least 90 soldiers were killed and dozens of others injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a military parade drill in the Yemeni capital Sanaa. more
Mandelson denies deal with Murdoch 15:05, May 21 2012
Lord Mandelson has denied there was any deal between Labour and Rupert Murdoch's newspaper empire ahead of the 1997 general election. more
MacAskill defends Megrahi release 15:05, May 21 2012
Scotland's Justice Secretary has defended his decision to release the Lockerbie bomber almost three years ago as the only man convicted of the tragedy is buried in Libya today. more
Bomber kills 60 at military drill 14:05, May 21 2012
At least 60 soldiers were killed and dozens of others injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a military parade drill in the Yemeni capital Sanaa. more
Olympic flame goes out during relay 13:05, May 21 2012
The Olympic torch went out for the first time during the London 2012 relay, organisers have confirmed. more
Missing children website relaunched 13:05, May 21 2012
An official website to help find missing and abducted children from the UK has been relaunched by the police's specialist child protection agency. more
Watchdog launches Hunt inquiry 13:05, May 21 2012
Westminster's sleaze watchdog has launched an inquiry into Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt following claims that he failed to register donations from media firms, it was revealed. more
38 soldiers killed in Yemen attack 12:05, May 21 2012
At least 38 soldiers were killed and dozens of others injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a military parade drill in the Yemeni capital Sanaa. more
Miliband attacks social inequality 12:05, May 21 2012
Ed Miliband has accused the Government of taking backward steps on social mobility by allowing inequality to grow and denying bright youngsters from poor backgrounds the chance to succeed. more
The latest UK & World news stories from the Press Association.
