In 1999 Wales held the inaugural elections for the National Assembly for Wales, and nearly forty percent of those elected were women. Within four years, this proportion had increased to fifty percent, making the National Assembly for Wales the first legislative body in history to be equal parts men and women. 

With Gender and Social Justice in Wales, editors Nickie Charles and Charlotte Aull Davies examine how that composition has affected the policies of the assembly over the past decade and assess the effects of these policies on social justice for women in Wales.