Today is the fiftieth anniversary of Margaret Thatcher becoming Tory leader and she has been a trailblazer for women the Tory party has gone to have three further women leaders yet Labour haven’t yet elected their first woman leader in those fifty years.

Since Thatcher was elected Labour have eleven leadership contests and in only four of those did any woman stand, by contrast the Tories have thirteen leadership elections since 1975 and in seven of them women have stood, winning five, six if you include the first round of the 1990 election.

I wonder if Labour’s lack of female leaders will be a factor in the next Labour leadership and being a woman might be an advantage this time around.

TSE