THE SNP would aim to enforce gender equality in the UK's public bodies using a large group of SNP MPs at Westminster, Nicola Sturgeon has said yesterday.

 

Ms Sturgeon also said her party would push for private sector firms to appoint women into senior roles during a visit to an afterschool club yesterday.

With the SNP expected to win a record number of seats in the House of Commons on May 7, the First Minister's party could hold sway in a hung parliament.

Ms Sturgeon made clear that nationalists would use such a position to champion the cause of women's equality across the UK.

She said: "Tory cuts have consistently hit women hardest - and ending austerity can help us to invest in the economy, create jobs, services and improve the provision of childcare so more parents can work.

"The Scottish Government is making progress on equality - with female employment the highest of any UK nation, the Living Wage lifting thousands of women out of poverty and our commitment to increasing childcare hours helping more women back to work.

"Our plans for a modest increase in public spending will allow us to invest in new and better jobs in Scotland, and our call to boost the minimum wage to £8.70 by 2020 will ensure these jobs deliver a fair day's pay."

She said the Scottish Government's 50:50 by 2020 pledge would "challenge all public, private and third-sector bodies to commit to take action on gender equality with a pledge to get a 50:50 gender split on boards by 2020".

She added: "Holding the balance of power at Westminster, we can go further.

"The SNP will push for action on equality at UK level - calling for UK Government action to ensure 50 per cent female representation on public boards and work with the private sector to encourage more female representation at senior level.

But the First Minister stopped short of confirming that the party's MPs would vote against a Queen's Speech at Westminster which contained proposals on the nuclear deterrent.

She was also quizzed on her stance on Trident following Wednesday's television debate.

She said: "The SNP has made very clear that Trident is a fundamental issue, so we would never be in any deal with a Labour government who is going to renew Trident and we would never vote for the renewal of Trident or for anything that facilitated that renewal.

"It is one example of where we want to build progressive alliances in the House of Commons."

Asked about whether Trident was still a red-line issue in any post-election deal with Labour, she said: "If we are in a vote-by-vote basis, then we will vote for things we agree with, but we will absolutely not vote for the renewal of Trident.

"If you had a confidence and supply arrangement and if we are in a situation where there is no formal arrangement, then ... we will absolutely not vote for Trident."

Asked if the SNP would vote against a Queen's Speech by a UK government containing proposals for Trident, she Ms Sturgeon dismissed attempts to "get ahead of the election process", adding: "I am making it very clear that the SNP will not vote for the renewal of Trident."

Ms Sturgeon She also spoke about a second independence referendum, and said that for any changes to be made there would have to be a "change of circumstances" for proposals to be included in future SNP manifestos.

She said: "The point I am making is that this is a decision that lies in the hands of the people."