Whenever possible I listen to Any Questions on Radio 4 in an attempt to learn what I can from the views of those on the panel. Occasionally the radio gets turned off if the voices have got a bit too shouty or if one or more panellist has views that I or others in the room find a bit too irritating. I was particularly pleased during the Summer weeks that the programme carried on throughout the Parliamentary recess with a range of guests whose politics were less about any particular party and more about people. However my one big frustration is that the gender balance seems to be permanently set to 2:1 male to female. Once in a while the panel of 4 will have an even number of men and women, but more often than not there are 3 men and one woman. Clearly due to the imbalance in Parliament, there are far more men to choose from, but that is hardly adequate as a reason? It certainly doesn’t explain the gender imbalance during the Summer weeks. Surely this cannot be rocket science!
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Thinking about it, a ‘panel’ should have an even balance regardless of the imbalance elsewhere. It should be a reflection of society, which as I understand it, is pretty much 50/50.