LABOUR MP Jess Phillips read out the names of more than 120 women killed in Britain over the past year during today’s Commons debate to mark International Women’s Day.

“The list is painfully long but in reality the list is much longer,” the MP for Birmingham Yardley said. 

“We can make it shorter, let’s act faster.”

Ms Phillips said the numbers are only known thanks to the Counting Dead Women Project run by Karen Ingala Smith. 

“She’s the only person keeping this data but her painstaking work over many years has meant that, unlike seven years ago, when I first read this list, we are all more aware of the peril of femicide.

“This wasn’t the government doing the work, it was women giving their labour away for free.”

Behind every name is a story of how better victim support or mental health services could have saved a woman’s life, she said. 

“Today we live in a society where the excuse the perpetrator uses to get a lighter sentence [is to] to ‘victim blame’ and diminish her innocence in the trial of her own death.” 

Women MPs also used the debate on Thursday to raise concerns about the impact of war and conflict on women around the world. 

Labour MP Abena Oppong-Asare MP said: “We know war has a devastating impact on the lives of women, it increases instances of gender-based violence and appalling use of sexual violence. 

“So I hope today the government can commit to practical support for women in Ukraine and Afghanistan.”

Labour MP Apsana Begum highlighted the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on women, against the “brutal” backdrop of the pandemic and a decade of Tory cuts.

“Women still face structural economic inequality throughout their lives and this intersects with other structures of inequality including race and disability,” she warned. 

But Ms Begum stressed that International Women’s Day was also about celebrating women’s achievements, citing the victory by Unite members at Barts NHS Trust this month after strike action by predominantly black, Asian and ethnic minority women. 

“I applaud their bravery and determination in fighting exploitation,” she said.

“The message is clearer than ever before: a woman’s place is in the political struggle, in her union, and yes on the picket lines.”