UK 128 of 646 members (19.8 per cent) in the Lower House and 142 of 744 members (19 per cent) in the House of Lords are women.

The country has no constitutional or election law quota for the national Parliament. But the Liberal Democrats and the Labour Party have party quotas for women candidates. The Scottish Parliament elected 33.3 per cent in the 2007 election. The National Assembly of Wales has 48.3 per cent elected women representatives.

China 604 of 2,980 elected members (20.3 per cent) are women.

In March 2007, the 10th National People's Congress, NPC, decided that for the 11th NPC to be elected in 2008, "the proportion of women deputies....should be no less than 22 per cent." Until now the electoral law of China has stated, that the NPC and local people's congresses all should have women deputies and that the percentages of women should be increased gradually.

France 107 of 577 members in the Lower House (18.5 per cent) and 56 of 332 members in the Upper House (16.9 per cent) are women.

In 2000, a new election law mandated that 50 per cent seats would be reserved for municipal elections for towns with more than 3,500 inhabitants; senatorial elections; regional elections; elections to the Assembly of Corsica; European Parliament elections and council of Paris elections.

Sri Lanka Has among the lowest number of women members: 11 of 225 (4.9 per cent)

A proposal for a 25 per cent quota for women in local bodies was dropped in the draft constitution presented to parliament and withdrawn in 2000. Tamil and Muslim party leaders opposed the quota because of the difficulties in finding women candidates.

... contd.