International Women's Day
A general debate on International Women's Day is scheduled for Thursday 12 March 2026 in the House of Commons chamber.
International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated annually on the 8th of March to highlight the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.
The first IWD was observed in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland on 19 March 1911. IWD’s date would then be standardised as the 8th of March in 1913.
The United Nations (UN) started celebrating the day during 1975’s International Year of Women. In December 1977, the General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming a United Nations Day for Women's Rights and International Peace to be observed on any day of the year by Member States, in accordance with their historical and national traditions.
‘Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls’ is the 2026 theme of the UN’s observance of IWD. The theme:
… calls for action to dismantle all barriers to equal justice: discriminatory laws, weak legal protections, and harmful practices and social norms that erode the rights of women and girls.
The 2026 campaign theme chosen by the IWD website is ‘Give to Gain’. The IWD website states:
The IWD 2026 Give To Gain Campaign encourages a mindset of generosity and collaboration.
Give To Gain emphasizes the power of reciprocity and support. When people, organizations, and communities give generously, opportunities and support for women increase. Giving is not a subtraction, it's intentional multiplication. When women thrive, we all rise.
Whether through donations, knowledge, resources, infrastructure, visibility, advocacy, education, training, mentoring, or time, contributing to women's advancement helps create a more supportive and interconnected world.
Legislative and policy developments under the current governmentIn its 2024 manifesto (PDF), the Labour Party introduced what it described as a “landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade” and promised to “use every government tool available to target perpetrators and address the root causes of abuse and violence.”[1] It also promised to strengthen women’s rights to equal pay and protections from maternity and menopause discrimination and sexual harassment.
In the July 2024 King’s Speech, King Charles III announced that the government “will bring forward plans to halve violence against women and girls.”
Employment Rights Act 2025The Employment Rights Act 2025 received royal assent on 18 December 2025. The Act amends the law relating to employment rights including providing for duties to be imposed on employers in relation to equality. Some provisions of the act relating to women include:
- Extending protections against dismissal for pregnant women and new mothers.
- Duty on employers to publish ‘equality action plans’ on supporting employees going through menopause and addressing the gender pay gap
- Further protection of the right to request flexible working arrangements
The government’s overview factsheet (PDF) provides further information.
Women’s health strategy 2025In October 2025, the government announced that its women’s health strategy will be “renewed to tackle inequalities and improve access to healthcare for women across England”. The government committed to addressing “longstanding barriers in women’s healthcare” as part of its mission of building an NHS fit for the future.
Raneem’s Law—violence against women and girlsIn February 2025, the government announced the launch of Raneem’s law to “embed the first domestic abuse specialists in 999 control rooms across five forces and ensure victims receive specialist support”. The initiative is in memory of Raneem Oudeh and her mother Khaola Saleem, who were murdered by Raneem’s ex-husband in 2018.”
The Home Secretary stated:
Every 30 seconds, someone calls the police about domestic abuse – over 100 people every hour seeking urgent help.
That’s why we are determined to overhaul the police emergency response to domestic abuse, making sure that victims get the specialist support and protection they need. That must be Raneem and Khaola’s legacy.
West Midlands has been determined to learn the lessons from the way Raneem and her mother were so badly failed and it is welcome that they, Bedfordshire, Humberside, Northumbria and Northamptonshire are all pioneering this ambitious approach to deliver the best possible response to victims at the worst time of their lives.
We need to change the future for others, where we couldn’t for Raneem, as part of our mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade.
Preventative duty—sexual harassment in the workplaceOn 26 October 2024, the government announced the coming into force of new protections from sexual harassment which would require employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees.
The then Minister for Women and Equalities, Anneliese Dodds, said:
This government is determined to ensure that we not only Make Work Pay; we also make work safe. Too many people feel uncomfortable or unsafe at work due to sexual harassment and we are putting every effort into putting a stop to it. The preventative duty is an important step on the journey, and we will continue to improve protections for workers until everyone can thrive.
The Equality Act provides legal protections against sexual harassment in the workplace. Despite this, persistent reports and revelations in recent years indicate that it remains a problem. So from today employers will be required to take ‘reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment of their employees. We will strengthen this duty through our Employment Rights Bill, which had its Second Reading this week, and will boost economic growth by tackling poor productivity, insecure work and broken industrial relations.
Guidance for employers on developing appropriate plans and policies was published by the Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Private members’ bills Women, Peace and Security BillThe Women, Peace and Security Bill is a private members’ bill introduced by Baroness Hodgson of Abinger of the Conservative Party. The bill seeks to:
support women in UK-sponsored and supported conflict prevention, peace processes, mediation and diplomatic delegations; to ensure systematic gender consideration and responsiveness in UK foreign and defence policy; and for connected purposes.
The bill would:
require the secretary of state to have regard to the UK’s national action plan on women, peace and security (NAP) when formulating and implementing policy on foreign affairs, defence or related matters… The bill would also require the government to report annually to Parliament on the progress made in relation to the NAP.
The bill originated in the House of Lords and is pending second reading in the House of Commons.
Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 (Extension) Act 2025The Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 (Extension) Act 2025 was introduced to “extend the period within which vacancies among the Lords Spiritual are to be filled by bishops who are women.” The act substitutes the provision “in the 10 years beginning with the day on which this Act comes into force” in section 1 of the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 with “before 18 May 2030”. The latter act included a sunset clause that would cause accelerated‑entry provisions to expire in May 2025, ten years after commencement. The amendment therefore extended the scheme by five years.
It was first introduced in July 2024, in the House of Lords, and received royal assent on 16 January 2025.
Women’s State Pension Age (Ombudsman Report and Compensation Scheme) BillThe Women’s State Pension Age (Ombudsman Report and Compensation Scheme) Bill was introduced to:
require the Secretary of State to publish measures to address the findings of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman in its report entitled “Women’s State Pension age: our findings on injustice and associated issues”; to require the Secretary of State to publish proposals for a compensation scheme for women born between 6 April 1950 and 5 April 1960 inclusive who have been affected by increases in the state pension age; and for connected purposes.
The bill is was introduced following the findings of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) regarding how changes to the women’s state pension age were communicated. The PHSO report found maladministration in the way the government informed women—particularly those born between 6 April 1950 and 5 April 1960—about increases to their state pension age. In its response to the report, the government stated that it did not agree “with the Ombudsman’s approach to injustice and remedy” and that there would be “no financial compensation to 1950s-born women”.
The bill is sponsored by Stephen Flynn (Scottish National Party) is pending second reading in the House of Commons.
Further resources Parliamentary debates- International Women’s Day, HL Deb 6 March 2026 c1484
- Violence against Women and Girls, HC19 March 2025 c333
- Sexual and Reproductive Health, 29 August 2025 | UIN 71595
- Civil Service: Equality, 22 July 2025 | UIN 69825
- Developing Countries: Women's Rights, 18 July 2025 | UIN 69167