Senedd women speak out about harrowing experiences of misogyny, intimidation and abuse

Emily Price 

Female Senedd Members have spoken out about the appalling misogyny, abuse and harassment they regularly face – with some warning that intimidation is discouraging Welsh women from taking up a career in politics.

In exclusive discussions with Nation.Cymru, the women of Wales’ parliament relayed harrowing experiences of online toxicity – including death threats, rape threats and insults about their physical appearance.

One Senedd Member even explained how she was branded a “bitch” that should be “executed”.

Some of the women interviewed requested that their identities be concealed over fears of being targeted further.

One MS who didn’t wish to be named told us that online abuse was the “hardest thing” about being a politician and at times had caused her to fear for her own safety.

She said: “Social media seems to encourage some people to behave in ways they wouldn’t dream of doing in real life, and I find that deeply troubling.

“Whilst male parliamentarians can also suffer with abuse, the abuse targeted at men will almost never be gendered abuse.

“The abuse I receive, on the other hand, almost always has a gendered element  – be it comments on my appearance, using derogatory and unpleasant names used against women, or rape threats.”

Several of the Senedd’s current and former female Members have been targeted by an anonymous online troll account linked to a man who collapsed a rape trial in which his friend was the accused.

Amplified

Often amplified by Reform UK figures and some Welsh Conservative MSs – the account claims to scrutinise wasteful spending in the Senedd but mainly focuses on polarising issues such as immigration.

It publishes selectively edited Senedd TV video clips that are often taken out of context with some of the footage years out of date.

Some female politicians told Nation.Cymru the account’s campaigns against them had led to countless abusive comments and harassment.

Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrat’s Jane Dodds recently spoke out about the the account on the ‘For Wales, See Wales’ podcast.

She told Nation.Cymru that the interview had led to her receiving an increase in online abuse.

Dodds said: “My staff had been seeing quite a lot of threats towards me on Facebook using very misogynistic language.

“One person even said ‘execute the bitch’. About six to eight months ago it got much worse and it all seemed to be stemming from the same social media account and a far-right group.

“What they posted about me wasn’t directly threatening – but the comments on the posts were.

“It started an avalanche of abuse. Four of the more serious threats against me were referred to the police – but they couldn’t trace the people behind it.

“The anonymous account that is targeting women knows exactly what they are doing. They may like to pretend they are completely innocent because they don’t make any direct threats.

“But the account is cutting and pasting things I’ve said completely out of context. Why do it? Why pick on female Members? I know the account has targeted some male politicians too – but it’s mostly women.

“The way in which the account posts means they are implicated in what comes after. They could easily not post anything or they could clamp down on the abusive comments. But as far as I know that hasn’t happened.”

Panic alarms

Dodds has since had extra security fitted to her home – including emergency panic alarms.

She said: “I was in the lift one day at work and another female MS told me she was experiencing the same abuse.

“We got together with a few other women and spoke to Senedd security about heightening our protection.

Dodds said she that although she talks about the abuse she faces openly – she doesn’t want her experiences to put off Wales’s future female political minds.

She said: “I want women to come into politics – for us to be emboldened and strengthened. But the abuse is a reality – not just for women but for men as well.

“I will say that we have had a fabulous response from Senedd’s security team and the police. I now feel much safer.”

The anonymous online account has also targeted former female Members – two of which left their elected roles several years ago.

Former Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood told us that the murder of MP Jo Cox had marked a moment that saw many women in politics realise that the anger being expressed by people could easily tip over into violence.

She said: “Anonymity seems to embolden people to say things online that they wouldn’t say face to face. In some cases, it can seem organised and orchestrated.

“Other times, people are just venting and behind that screen, the worst of them is on display. I’m not sure if we can say bullying and abuse of women is on the rise, or whether social media is a channel which exposes and amplifies the prejudices and hatred that some people have always had, but society stopped them voicing.

“If someone spoke in the pre-social media pub in the way some people speak online, the protagonist may well have faced a punch, or at the very least would be shunned. There are no such consequences when people speak out of line or in a bullying way on social media. ”

Stress

The former Plaid leader says she is aware of many women who had decided not to run for election because of the stress that comes with social media abuse.

She said: “It’s not possible to be an elected politician without an online presence. If you are going to make strong statements and hold strong political views, there is a risk you will become a target for the trolls and the bullies.”

Former Plaid Cymru Senedd Member Bethan Sayed has also faced ongoing online harassment despite leaving elected office almost five years ago.

She told Nation.Cymru that the same troll account that had focused on targeting many of the Senedd’s current female Members had also set its sights on her, sharing video clips of her from 2016.

Sayed said: “People are leaving abusive comments on my Instagram and messaging me abuse thinking that I am still elected to the Senedd, when in fact these videos are old. Their views are Islamophobic and unacceptable.”

One video circulated by the account shows Sayed speaking about a project carried out by a school in which some non Muslim female pupils wore a hijab to see how their female Muslim colleagues may or may not experience racism throughout the day.

Videos

The females who trialled this said it was a success and that it made them more empathetic towards their Muslim fellow pupils.

However, the video shared of Sayed by the troll account has subtitles implying that the former MS wants all girls in Wales to wear a hijab.

Sayed said: “I am still receiving almost weekly abuse about this, again, because people are wrongly assuming that I am still elected to the Senedd and disagree with a false view that they think I have. ”

Another female MS who wished to remain anonymous said that women face sexism and misogyny every single day – but when people are able to hide who they are online “it makes them even bolder”.

She said: “I really don’t understand why so many men feel the need or right to belittle any woman that dares have an opinion, and comment on how she looks, how she dresses, her tone of voice and whether he finds her attractive or not.

“Unless they are threatening me or my family, it’s easy to ignore some of the online bots / sad individuals who evidently don’t have lives outside of Facebook.

“Where it gets trickier is when there’s a concerted campaign by accounts where they mainly use clips of female politicians, usually out of context, and encourage a pile on and deliberately stir up hate.

“It’s not just upsetting, it’s dangerous, and can make you feel fearful.

“The fact that some politicians, or potential candidates especially those who represent the Conservatives and Reform, share clips from these accounts is something that needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency.”

Abuse

The MS added that she knew of “many brilliant women” who would be outstanding representatives that are put off standing by online abuse or have decided to not seek re-election.

She said: “This shouldn’t be something we accept as inevitable and must be addressed for the sake of our democracy.

“What I say to young women who are interested in standing is that there is support available, and that in the Senedd, this is an area of priority for the women’s caucus.

“The more women that are elected, the more we can do to tackle misogyny within politics and society more widely.”

Welsh Conservative Natasha Asghar is the only female BAME Member of the Senedd.

She told Nation.Cymru that the hostility she received was usually about non-devolved matters – such as international affairs.

Hate

Although Asghar says she has become hardened to abuse, she warned that the rise in social media hate was putting off some women from entering the political arena.

She said: “It’s a real shame as I firmly believe that there are so many talented, hardworking and experienced women out there who would make an invaluable contribution to politics.

“I just see those who harass, and abuse politicians are just like school bullies, they are full of hot air and at times I can understand their frustrations – when they are furious about a certain policy – but there is a way of saying things in a polite and effective manner.”

However, the Tory MS said the mysogyny and harassment should not deter women from standing for elected office.

She said: “I know we live in a world where sadly keyboard warriors like to intimidate and harass politicians.

“But we do have a strong security team, who are brilliant and I know the majority of political institutions from councils to the Senedd care about members’ security and safety.”

Another female MS who didn’t wish to be named regularly faces “upsetting” personal insults on social media from accounts with profiles that offer little information as to who the commenter is.

She said: “I try not to take it personally, although it can be very difficult. Like many others, I got into the job to help people and make a difference because I care.

“But caring people can be sensitive and easily hurt. I remind myself that before I became a councillor, I didn’t know much about politics, and that is why I try to ensure that people have the correct information wherever I can.

“I have to tell my husband not to respond in defence of me, which has been difficult for him.”

Concerned

Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Trefnydd and Chief Whip Jane Hutt is the longest serving Labour minister in UK history.

She told Nation.Cymru that she was “deeply concerned” about the rise in abuse faced by women working in politics.

Hutt said: “I’m proud to serve in a Senedd that has consistently maintained a gender balance of more than 40% women – a record we should celebrate, but never take for granted.

“However, I’m deeply concerned about the rising abuse and harassment directed at women in public life, including the vile online attacks from anonymous accounts that are designed to intimidate and silence female voices.”

The cabinet secretary says the Welsh Government is taking action through the Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Act 2024 to “strengthen protections against intimidation”.

Hutt added: “We have provided guidance to political parties on creating inclusive candidate selection processes and on protecting candidates from abuse.

“We are also supporting initiatives such as Equal Power Equal Voice so that the next generation of female leaders has the tools, confidence and support they need to engage in public life.”