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When it comes to getting more women into parliament, politicians have at least started to take active measures. The British Labour Party introduced all-female shortlists in 1997.

I didn't particularly want to go to Westminster - not that there were many seats available or chances for women to get elected. In 1987, Labour sent down 50 MPs, and only one of them was a woman.

Well, if you look at the programme that we're offering, I think that is a future which is fair for women as well as men. We're still heavily outnumbered - we're still four to one in parliament - but we are pioneers! We are forging a new path.

Women are not making it to the top. A hundred and ninety heads of state; nine are women. Of all the people in parliament in the world, thirteen per cent are women. In the corporate sector, women at the top - C-level jobs, board seats - tops out at fifteen, sixteen per cent.

Well, I think women across Australia, particularly, are a bit fed up with this constant attack and belittling of women in politics, and particularly the role of a female as a prime minister.

The Labour party has done more than any other to address gender inequalities, through legislation and other means, and to increase women's representation in politics, which has led to recent increases in the number of female politicians.

In politics, they found there were not enough females in the House of Commons, so they came up with the idea of shortlists having to have women on them.

For me, personally, it has been humbling since I became First Minister to speak to women and girls and have them tell me how much it means to them to have a woman in the top job in politics in Scotland.

Women have worked hard; starved in prison; given of their time and lives that we might sit in the House of Commons and take part in the legislating of this country.