Reports in The Sunday Times, Observer and Mail on Sunday all point to a renewed attempt by David Cameron to increase the number of female Conservative MPs.
The number selected so far falls well short of the 57% target that David Cameron's office set for the first round of selections and is no better than the ratio of women in the fast-tracked (pre A-list) seats.
The Sunday Times suggests that Mr Cameron wants to "ensure at least one woman reaches the final stages of selection" and the MoS talks of action to guarantee that "at least three of the final six are women". An unnamed Tory official told the Mail On Sunday's Simon Walters:
"We have made good progress but there are still a few stick-in-the-muds who find it hard to accept that a woman has as much right to be an MP as a man. We are absolutely determined to have a very large number of women candidates, and not just pay lip service to the idea."
Ann Widdecombe's opposition to the A-list is also quoted by the Mail:
"This is an insult to women. Every woman MP has to be able to look every male MP in the eye, from the Prime Minister down, and know she got there on the same basis as they did. This wretched process is creating two classes of MP: those who have beaten off all competition to get there, and women who have had their paths artificially smoothed. Neither Margaret Thatcher nor I needed this kind of help to get into Parliament. I have spoken to some women on the 'A' list and they have said they hate it and regard it as patronising, but realise they have to go along with it."
Editor's note: "We must wait and see the detail of what David Cameron brings forward but none of the newspaper reports suggest that the party is moving beyond 'face deep diversity'. ConservativeHome has long argued that the party is not made hugely more representative if we swap southern male barristers for southern female bankers, for example. Real diversity will depend upon active recruitment of candidates from the north and those who have been homemakers or have worked in the public and poverty-fighting sectors. ConservativeHome recently published an analysis which showed that it cost an average £41,550 to become a Tory MP. We proposed modest reforms including (1) reducing the cost of attending a Parliamentary Assessment Board, (2) an emergency access fund for candidates in financial distress and (3) the appointment of a 'candidate's protector' in every seat who would help the Association to understand the financial pressures facing their candidate. It will be interesting to see if the party is going to take these or similar ideas on board. The most encouraging ingredient of Mr Cameron's reported reforms is greater emphasis on open primary elections. Not only do they downgrade 'macho' skills like oratory but ConservativeHome also believes that open primary elections are likely to select more of the local candidates that David Burrowes has argued are the 'big swinging' candidates. Any attempt to impose half-women shortlists may backfire. Associations may, perversely, think that any woman in the final round is there to make up a quota rather than because of her intrinsic merits."