Creating a fairer Britain
What does a politician look like in the eyes of a young person?
To coincide with the start of the Parliamentary year, we invited young people from schools close to the Liberal Democrat, Labour and Conservative conferences to draw a picture of who they think is a typical politician. The students, aged 10-11, were encouraged to discuss the role of government in society before starting their pictures.
We wanted to know if they would make assumptions about who holds power. Would they draw pictures of white middle aged men, because that’s what they see on TV? You can view the results and read their comments in the slideshows above.
The pictures will provide a useful backdrop to research due to be published by the Commission later this year, Pathways to Politics which looks at the routes our politicians followed to get elected. We are calling on political parties to take action to ensure more women, disabled people, ethnic minorities and other under-represented groups can get the opportunity to stand for Parliament.