The Alice Bacon Lecture 2026: Frances O'Grady

Former general secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and Labour peer Frances O’Grady is to deliver the 2026 Alice Bacon Lecture at the University of Leeds on Thursday 12th March.

The lecture will take place at 18:30–19:30 in the Great Hall at the University of Leeds. Doors will open at 17:30. A drinks reception in Parkinson Court will follow the lecture. This is a public lecture and it is free to attend – to secure a place, please register for a ticket.

Lecture Summary

Women’s lives have transformed since Alice Bacon was first elected to Parliament. The Pill revolutionised reproductive choices and today women are having fewer babies, later. There are more women at work than ever before, and the gender pay gap has narrowed. The grassroots Me Too movement blew the lid off sexual harassment at work and over half of trade union members are now women. 

But the battle for equality is far from won. While the Labour Party can claim credit for boosting women’s representation in parliament, it has never had a (permanent) woman leader. Covid exposed how much the economy depends on key workers – mostly women – and at the same time how little their work is valued. Paid parental leave for new mums and dads remains among the worst in Europe, even though it is one of the most effective ways of closing the gender pay gap. And shockingly, the Epstein files have revealed a transnational system of super-wealth steeped in alt-right ideology and sexual exploitation.

Today, right-wing populism poses the biggest threat to women’s rights. Labour entered power with a promise to grow a fairer economy, lift living standards, and halve violence against women and girls. But big tech and finance continue to drive inequality, and the extreme Right is exploiting ordinary people’s sense of fear, powerlessness, and humiliation. Frances O’Grady will explore what’s gone wrong in Britain, and how Labour can deliver a real new deal for working women and men alike.

Speaking ahead of the lecture, Frances O’Grady says, 

It’s an honour to follow so many brilliant women in giving this year’s Alice Bacon lecture. Today, the biggest threat to women’s rights comes from right-wing populism. Labour must tackle the economic fear and inequality that fuels the rise of the extreme right and stand up for the decent majority.

About Frances O’Grady

Frances was the first woman to hold the post of General Secretary for the TUC, taking up the position in 2013. She stood down in 2023 and was appointed as a Labour peer to co-lead opposition in the Lords to the then Conservative government's anti-strikes Minimum Service Levels Bill.

Starting as a T&G union rep and throughout her working life, Frances has campaigned tirelessly for workers’ rights. Fair pay, and race and gender equality, are core ambitions of hers.

She has worked on several successful campaigns for the introduction of a national minimum wage and equal pay for women. In 1997 she was appointed to head up the TUC's New Unionism campaign and launched the Organising Academy. The Academy aims to challenge the stereotypical image of the trade unionist as 'male, pale and stale', to a profile better suited to the TUC’s six million plus membership – which is now 50:50 men and women.

On behalf of the TUC, Frances played a prominent role in the campaign for Britain to remain in the European Union. During Covid, Frances led negotiations for the furlough scheme which protected 11 million jobs. Frances now sits on the board of GB Energy to represent workers' interests and champion a just transition.

About the Lecture Series

The Alice Bacon Lecture is an annual public event and celebrates the achievements of pioneering women, and is hosted by the University of Leeds’ Centre for Democratic Politics. It is named for the Leeds Labour MP who led a crusade to improve the education of working-class girls and boys. Alice Bacon was elected to represent Leeds North East in 1945 and served her city constituents continuously until her retirement a quarter of a century later, when she took up a seat in the House of Lords as a Baroness. Leeds did not return another woman to the Commons until the election in 2010 of Leeds West and Pudsey MP, and now Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP. Reeves is also the biographer of Baroness Bacon. Ms Reeves partnered with the University’s School of Politics and International Studies to establish the lectures in the name of her trailblazing forebear, with the aim of celebrating the achievements of successful women – locally and nationally.

The inaugural lecture was given in 2018 by Harriet Harman – the House of Commons’ longest continuously serving female MP – followed in 2019 by Baroness Hale of Richmond, who was the first female President of the Supreme Court and the country’s most senior judge until her retirement from the role in December that year. After a break in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the series returned in 2021 with Baroness Doreen Lawrence, who spoke about women in the public eye and her personal journey. In 2022, the lecture was given by celebrated classicist, Professor Mary Beard, who spoke on women in power. Dame Sharon White, the Chair of the John Lewis Partnership, delivered the lecture in 2023 on the topic of female leadership. The most recent lecture, delivered in 2025, was given by celebrated broadcaster and journalist Naga Munchetty, who spoke on gender inequality in healthcare and medical misogyny. An interview between Naga Munchetty and final year undergraduate, Mia Raja, can be found here.

Eventbrite: register for a ticket now!

Queries

For event queries, contact the organiser Dr Adrienne Mortimer (a.mortimer@leeds.ac.uk). For media and communications queries, contact the External Comms and Campaigns Officer, Victoria Prest (v.prest@leeds.ac.uk).