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Hello, this is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm Beth.

And I'm Neil.

Differences between men and women have existed forever.

But in modern times,

imbalances in the opportunities for men and women have widened.

One area where this imbalance is widest is politics.

When we think of female politicians,

the names Margaret Thatcher, Angla Merkel, Indira Gandhi,

or Jacinda Ardern, all come to mind.

But while women make up over half the world's population,

only 26% of the world's politicians are women.

How much of this is because of misogyny?

Hatred and prejudice against women.

It seems that the surprise resignation of New Zealand's Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern,

was partly because of the misogynistic abuse she received online.

So in this programme, we'll be asking,

why is life so hard for women in politics?

And of course, we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary as well.

But before that, I have a question for you, Neil.

Britain has had three female prime ministers,

...