PATRICIA SCOTLAND,
BARONESS SCOTLAND OF ASTHAL
ATTORNEY GENERAL 2007-2010
1955
Born in Dominica, the tenth of twelve siblings Emigrated to East London aged three
1991
Became the UK's first female black QC
1997
Made a Labour peer and becomes Baroness Scotland of Asthal
1999
First black woman to serve as a government minister
2007
First female Attorney General
Believe in yourself and your talents. That's what my father taught me… He was the greatest feminist I ever knew. I didn't realise it until I discovered that other women thought they weren't capable of things… If I had the power, I would like everybody to have the equivalent of Arthur M Scotland in their lives.
Many women look at what public life involves and they just don't want it. It isn't that they don't want to work hard, or work for change. They just don't want that level of public scrutiny.
But if you don't get involved then nothing changes. Having more women involved in policymaking will, and already has, helped to change the culture.
This isn't about political correctness. It's what works, what's economically smart. It's not soft and fluffy, it's where we need to be in order to be competitive and keep our place in the world.
In the financial crisis, those companies who had a good gender balance on the board did best. It's the dynamic between the genders that engenders success. A balanced leadership team provides better outcomes.
