Record 200 women MPs expected to be elected on June 8

  • Politics

A record number of female MPs is expected to be elected to parliament on June 8 according to new analysis.

Two hundred women could take their place in the House of Commons if the Conservatives win an increased majority, up nine on the total elected at the 2015 general election.

If Labour defy the opinion polls and end up the largest party in a hung parliament the number of women MPs could rise as high as 212.

A minimum of 200 women in the Commons would mean nearly one in three MPs is female.

Around 92 would be Conservatives, the largest number in the party's history and a big jump from the 68 elected in 2015.

Labour would have around 82 female MPs, down from 99 in 2015 and well below the party's all-time high of 101 in 1997.

The Press Association calculated the figures by projecting the seats that would change hands on June based on a variety of outcomes.

Chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society Katie Ghose welcomed the likely rise in female MPs, but described the increase on 2015 as "glacial".

"It shows there is much more to be done to achieve gender equality in politics and public life," she said.

"We cannot settle for incremental change. It's time for some real momentum on women's representation in politics."

Projected number of women MPs likely to elected to parliament

  • Conservative: 92 (up 24 from 2015)

  • Labour 82 (down 17 since 2015)

  • Liberal Democrat: 3 (up 3 since 2015)

  • SNP: 18 (down 2 since 2015)

  • Plaid Cymru: 1 (equal to 2015)

  • Caroline Lucas would retain her seat for the Green party

Leader of the Women's Equality Party, Sophie Walker, said the projected increase was a reason for celebration, but highlighted that the election of 200 female MPs would still place Britain behind countries such as Zimbabwe, Uganda, Spain and Mexico in terms of female representation in parliament.

She said: "This is particularly worrying as we move towards Brexit and the drafting of the Great Repeal Bill: government must be closely scrutinised to ensure the continuation of women's rights to equal pay, pregnancy protection and part-time workers' rights."

Equalities minister and Conservative candidate for Gosport, Caroline Dinenage, said she found the projections "encouraging for the future".

She said: "From the Conservatives' point of view, for a good number of our retiring seats we have female candidates, and it's particularly heartening they were selected not from all-female shortlists, but entirely on their own merit."