THE Welsh Conservatives were the only political group in the Senedd to reject an offer of training on sexism and sexual harassment, despite a cross-party recommendation urging all Members of the Senedd (MSs) to take part.
The training was proposed following a report by the Senedd’s Equality and Social Justice Committee, titled How We Must All Play Our Part: A Public Health Approach to Halting the Epidemic in Gender-Based Violence. Published last year, the report called on MSs to undertake training on preventing gender-based violence (GBV) by the end of 2024.
To facilitate this, the Senedd Commission—responsible for the institution’s day-to-day running—arranged for an external organisation to deliver the training in autumn 2024. The course, developed by Bristol-based company Kindling Intervention, was designed specifically to help participants recognise and intervene in cases of sexism, gender stereotyping, gendered microaggressions, sexual harassment, and other forms of gender-based violence. Given the senior leadership status of the participants, additional elements focused on leadership, privilege, and power.
The training covered three key areas:
•. Increasing awareness and understanding of what constitutes GBV;
•. Enhancing bystander intervention skills to equip individuals with the ability to identify and address potential GBV situations safely and effectively;
•. Understanding the complexities of tackling GBV within diverse cultural contexts.
•. Despite the initiative, only two political groups—Labour and Plaid Cymru—took up the offer. A total of 22 MSs attended the sessions, accounting for 37% of the Senedd’s 60 members.
Conservatives initially declined training
At the time, a spokesperson for then-leader Andrew RT Davies stated that participation in training was “left to the discretion of the individual.”
More recently, a spokesperson for the current Conservative leader, Darren Millar, has said that the party “takes the issue of gender-based violence extremely seriously” and that a training session for its members is now “being scheduled.”
The Senedd’s chief executive, Manon Antoniazzi, acknowledged the challenges in arranging training for MSs, explaining in a letter to committee chair Jenny Rathbone that her team has extensive experience in working with party groups on sensitive topics. She noted that political groups tend to prefer internal training on such matters and that scheduling training sessions remains a logistical challenge.
“Having approached all party groups, two groups took up the opportunity to receive this training in the autumn term of 2024,” she wrote. “The third party group were unfortunately unable to afford the time/capacity to dedicate to this topic.”
A serious and underreported Issue
The report that led to the training initiative highlighted the prevalence of gender-based violence in society. At the time of its publication, committee chair Jenny Rathbone, a Labour MS, stressed the urgency of tackling the issue.
“Two women a week are killed by a former or current partner in England and Wales,” she said. “A third of women will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime.”
She also emphasised that the true scale of the problem is likely underreported, stating: “Due to under-reporting, it is likely that official figures underestimate the true scale of this shocking problem. Each victim of this epidemic is a victim too many.”
“To end it, we must all play our part—especially men and boys—by tackling the root causes,” she added.
While the Conservatives have now committed to scheduling a training session, their initial refusal stands in contrast to efforts by other parties to engage in the initiative from the outset.
To facilitate this, the Senedd Commission—responsible for the institution’s day-to-day running—arranged for an external organisation to deliver the training in autumn 2024. The course, developed by Bristol-based company Kindling Intervention, was designed specifically to help participants recognise and intervene in cases of sexism, gender stereotyping, gendered microaggressions, sexual harassment, and other forms of gender-based violence. Given the senior leadership status of the participants, additional elements focused on leadership, privilege, and power.
The training covered three key areas:
•. Increasing awareness and understanding of what constitutes GBV;
•. Enhancing bystander intervention skills to equip individuals with the ability to identify and address potential GBV situations safely and effectively;
•. Understanding the complexities of tackling GBV within diverse cultural contexts.
•. Despite the initiative, only two political groups—Labour and Plaid Cymru—took up the offer. A total of 22 MSs attended the sessions, accounting for 37% of the Senedd’s 60 members.
Conservatives initially declined training
At the time, a spokesperson for then-leader Andrew RT Davies stated that participation in training was “left to the discretion of the individual.”
More recently, a spokesperson for the current Conservative leader, Darren Millar, has said that the party “takes the issue of gender-based violence extremely seriously” and that a training session for its members is now “being scheduled.”
The Senedd’s chief executive, Manon Antoniazzi, acknowledged the challenges in arranging training for MSs, explaining in a letter to committee chair Jenny Rathbone that her team has extensive experience in working with party groups on sensitive topics. She noted that political groups tend to prefer internal training on such matters and that scheduling training sessions remains a logistical challenge.
“Having approached all party groups, two groups took up the opportunity to receive this training in the autumn term of 2024,” she wrote. “The third party group were unfortunately unable to afford the time/capacity to dedicate to this topic.”
A serious and underreported Issue
The report that led to the training initiative highlighted the prevalence of gender-based violence in society. At the time of its publication, committee chair Jenny Rathbone, a Labour MS, stressed the urgency of tackling the issue.
“Two women a week are killed by a former or current partner in England and Wales,” she said. “A third of women will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime.”
She also emphasised that the true scale of the problem is likely underreported, stating: “Due to under-reporting, it is likely that official figures underestimate the true scale of this shocking problem. Each victim of this epidemic is a victim too many.”
“To end it, we must all play our part—especially men and boys—by tackling the root causes,” she added.
While the Conservatives have now committed to scheduling a training session, their initial refusal stands in contrast to efforts by other parties to engage in the initiative from the outset.
To facilitate this, the Senedd Commission—responsible for the institution’s day-to-day running—arranged for an external organisation to deliver the training in autumn 2024. The course, developed by Bristol-based company Kindling Intervention, was designed specifically to help participants recognise and intervene in cases of sexism, gender stereotyping, gendered microaggressions, sexual harassment, and other forms of gender-based violence. Given the senior leadership status of the participants, additional elements focused on leadership, privilege, and power.
The training covered three key areas:
•. Increasing awareness and understanding of what constitutes GBV;
•. Enhancing bystander intervention skills to equip individuals with the ability to identify and address potential GBV situations safely and effectively;
•. Understanding the complexities of tackling GBV within diverse cultural contexts.
•. Despite the initiative, only two political groups—Labour and Plaid Cymru—took up the offer. A total of 22 MSs attended the sessions, accounting for 37% of the Senedd’s 60 members.
Conservatives initially declined training
At the time, a spokesperson for then-leader Andrew RT Davies stated that participation in training was “left to the discretion of the individual.”
More recently, a spokesperson for the current Conservative leader, Darren Millar, has said that the party “takes the issue of gender-based violence extremely seriously” and that a training session for its members is now “being scheduled.”
The Senedd’s chief executive, Manon Antoniazzi, acknowledged the challenges in arranging training for MSs, explaining in a letter to committee chair Jenny Rathbone that her team has extensive experience in working with party groups on sensitive topics. She noted that political groups tend to prefer internal training on such matters and that scheduling training sessions remains a logistical challenge.
“Having approached all party groups, two groups took up the opportunity to receive this training in the autumn term of 2024,” she wrote. “The third party group were unfortunately unable to afford the time/capacity to dedicate to this topic.”
A serious and underreported Issue
The report that led to the training initiative highlighted the prevalence of gender-based violence in society. At the time of its publication, committee chair Jenny Rathbone, a Labour MS, stressed the urgency of tackling the issue.
“Two women a week are killed by a former or current partner in England and Wales,” she said. “A third of women will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime.”
She also emphasised that the true scale of the problem is likely underreported, stating: “Due to under-reporting, it is likely that official figures underestimate the true scale of this shocking problem. Each victim of this epidemic is a victim too many.”
“To end it, we must all play our part—especially men and boys—by tackling the root causes,” she added.
While the Conservatives have now committed to scheduling a training session, their initial refusal stands in contrast to efforts by other parties to engage in the initiative from the outset.
