When the Marriage Equality Bill was being debated over the past few weeks I came out strongly in favour. The primary reason was that I believe in the fundamental principle that we are all born equal, despite evidence to the contrary in our society. Any law or practice that safeguards or emphasises that equality will always have my support.

Now that the Bill has passed through Parliament the focus is turning to the under-representation of women in politics and positions of power in Malta.

Various solutions to the problem have been bandied about, including fixed quotas for female political candidates and board members in government institutions. I will make it absolutely clear: I, and the party I form part of, Partit Demokratiku, are totally against the idea of any form of quota system. Not because we are against women succeeding, or because we think they are not capable of doing a good job if they do. We are against it for precisely the opposite reason. After all, the leader of our party is a woman herself.

Quotas are a form of discrimination. It may mean some very capable male candidate competing for a post would not be able to fill it as the female quota has not been filled. It will mean that female parliamentarians and executive board members will be looked down upon, as people who have achieved not through ability but through favour. It will demean the achievements of people who should be looked up to as role models both for young men and women.

Women are often considered the stronger sex. Most of them would be insulted by the thought they need special help to achieve

The latest proposal by the Labour Party, spearheaded by MEP Miriam Dalli, is to mentor women and encourage their participation in politics. This initiative, called Lead, will guide a certain number of women per year through the process of becoming a politician, including how to campaign, on usage of the media, and attendance at conferences; all under the wing of a seasoned politician.

This is certainly a step forward from the idea of quotas in politics and should be lauded, but it does not go to the root of the problem of why we still have such a low participation rate of women in poli­tics. Besides, why should it be offered only to female prospective candidates, and not to men?

We live in a time where the majority of university students are women. It can be safely concluded that the majority of university graduates will be women as well. Among them will be a fair share of ambitious and capable people who will have a lot to offer to our country and the will to contribute. And yet this is not reflected in how many women hold seats in the highest institution of our republic. The question must be asked: why?

Parliamentary sessions are still held in the evening, primarily because our MPs are part-timers. The salary they receive as MPs is not enough on its own to sustain a family and is far below what can be earned as a professional elsewhere. Many women who would want to start a career in politics would be of an age where they would have young families and, the world being what it is today, would not necessarily have a partner there to help support them logistically or financially.

It would be expected that the government in power, whichever party is ruling, would lead by example. Not by positively discriminating in favour of women; not by offering them special programmes not made available to their male counterparts, but by creating a level playing field where the inherent disadvantages women face are eliminated and where they can compete on an equal footing with their peers.

MPs should be offered the option of becoming full-timers and a salary that reflects the fact that they will be giving up lucrative professional careers to serve their country. Parliamentary sessions and committees should be fixed around school times as far as possible. All MPs should be offered support staff to help them do research and participate more productively in Parliament. Child care facilities should be offered in or close to Parliament if necessary.

Thanks to the British parliamentary tradition we inherited from our former rulers, we like to consider our Prime Minister as the first among equals. We need to create a system where female politicians will be equals among equals: treated the same as men, with the same opportunities as men and competing against them without disadvantage, but also without any form of favour.

Women are often considered the stronger sex. Most of them would be insulted by the thought they need special help to achieve. Let’s give them the opportunity to shine on their own steam.