In this blog Su Moore, CEO of the Jo Cox Foundation, shares the work being done to tackle the abuse of politicians by the Jo Cox Civility Commission.
At The Jo Cox Foundation we believe that abuse and intimidation of elected politicians is one of the biggest threats to democracy in the UK. In the last seven years, two sitting MPs have been murdered as they met their constituents. Abuse takes place online (via social media, virtual meetings, and email) and offline (in-person or via telephone or post). The more common types of abuse include death and sexual abuse threats, abusive and discriminatory language, threats to family members, character assassination and intimidatory behaviour.
We know that this issue doesn’t impact everyone equally. Evidence shows that women, as well as those from minority ethnic backgrounds, people with a disability and LGBT+ politicians receive a disproportionate amount of abuse. That’s why The Jo Cox Foundation is determined to bring about change on this issue. Jo was passionate about supporting other women into politics, and a fierce advocate for a 50/50 parliament. We believe that while this culture of abuse persists, we’re not going to be able to achieve a representative democracy as too many people will be put off participating.
Addressing abuse and intimidation is extremely complex, with action needed across various sectors, including social media, policing and political parties. It has often been put in the ‘too difficult’ pile. But Jo didn’t believe in ‘too difficult’. That is why the Foundation launched the Jo Cox Civility Commission in February to gather practical, implementable solutions to address the issue.
During the first phase of the Commission, running through to the summer, we’re asking experts from various sectors and people with lived experience of abuse to share potential solutions. We’re anticipating that some approaches will be easily implemented in the short term, but that some solutions will require more time. As an example of an issue that will require a long-term solution, we’ve been hearing from many people that there’s an issue with political education – that often abuse is a result of people not understanding whom they should be asking about their specific issue or concern.
Once we’ve finished this consultation period, we’ll put forward a set of recommendations to bring about change. Then, with our Commission co-chairs Baroness Bertin and Lord Coaker, we’ll advocate for those recommendations to be implemented. We’re determined that this isn’t just going to be a report that sits on a shelf!
The more people we hear from, the more robust and representative our final recommendations will be. If you have lived experience of abuse and intimidation, or have ideas about how to make change on this issue, we’d love to hear from you. Get involved with our open call here: Jo Cox Civility Commission call for submissions.