Sexual Harassment in the UK Parliament

“Representing a major contribution to our knowledge and understanding of sexual harassment in the workplace, this is a strong candidate for becoming a seminal text in the area. Julios has approached the subject unflinchingly and head-on. She flags the slippery nature of definition, with the consequent confusion around perceptions of the term. Painstakingly, she has catalogued a wealth of rich examples, across occupational sectors and across country boundaries, convincingly building the case for the intersectional feminist analysis she adopted. Crucially, ways forward are also discussed. The book is certainly overdue in the UK, and internationally.”

— Jenny Bimrose, Professor Emeritus, Institute for Employment Research, University of Warwick, UK




“This important book documents the ‘boys’ club’ ethos and terrifying degree of institutional sexism that have led to the ingrained and ongoing sexual harassment of women in the Westminster and other UK parliaments. Christina Julios shows how women experiencing sexual harassment from their colleagues have been silenced through a corporate culture of complicity and points to the urgent need to counter the gender power gap that exists at the heart of our political system.”

— Marianne Hester OBE FAcSS, Professor, Chair in Gender, Violence and International Policy at the University of Bristol, UK


This book examines the phenomenon of sexual harassment in the UK Parliament and efforts to tackle it. The volume’s in-depth research unveils a political culture where sexual transgressions thrive. Its intersectional feminist perspective furthermore highlights multiple systems of gendered oppression perpetuating inequality. Britain’s experience is viewed against the global #MeToo movement and Hollywood’s Weinstein sex scandal. The book identifies ways to redress the status quo and challenges ahead, including a gender power gap, misuse of non-disclosure agreements to silence victims, and misogynistic organisational cultures.



Dr Christina Julios is an academic author, Honorary Associate at The Open University (UK) and Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK). She has authored the books Female Genital Mutilation and Social Media (2019), Forced Marriage and ‘Honour’ Killings in Britain (2015), and Contemporary British Identity (2008).