EMCC Manifesto: Holyrood 2026

In Scotland, we love the arts.

In 2022, 88% of us engaged with culture and 84% agree that Scotland is a creative nation. Scotland’s cultural sector continues to grow, contributing over £5 billion to our economy and accounting for over 78,000 jobs.

At national, local and individual levels across Scotland, culture and media help shape societal attitudes and have the power to transform our communities for the better. In 2024, the majority of Scots agreed that culture and the arts make a positive difference to their local communities, and there is strong evidence that engaging with the arts enhances social cohesion.

And yet, Scotland’s culture and media sectors are often not safe, equal or fair for women. There remains a persistent lack of representation of women and diverse voices in positions of power in Scotland’s creative industries. Women do not earn equal salaries to men in the cultural sector, and the gender pay gap persists across Scotland’s labour market. Self-employed workers continue to be undercut in the creative industries, with 69% of freelancers experiencing late payment, and 46% of freelancers losing work and pay when ill or taking maternity leave. Three times the number of women to men cite care responsibilities as a major barrier to their work in the arts, and over half of workers have experienced, or seen, bullying and sexual harassment in the creative sector.

For these deep-rooted problems to improve, we need our leaders to commit to changing policies and practices that are currently holding women back from achieving their full potential.

Our vision is for a Scottish society where women’s equal contribution to culture and media is fully realised and recognised, free from discrimination. We ask that the new Government commits to this vision with us and takes the following three steps to remove barriers for women who make up Scotland’s thriving creative industries:

Read our manifesto in full. 

Would you like to add your support to our manifesto? Email us for a supporter package.