A decade on from an historic speech she delivered on misogyny, former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard tells Danni and Laura there has been progress but there’s still a lot more to be done. Now chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, she’s passionate about closing the gender pay gap and believes we’ll only see real change if more women take on leadership roles. With elections being held around the world, she urges women to get out and vote on issues like childcare and education.

Also on this episode, Danni and Laura discuss why the UK’s financial watchdog is cracking down on social media influencers talking about money and investing, as more people turn to them when making investment decisions.

On this episode of the Money Matters podcast we hear from Debbie Wosskow, the serial entrepreneur who’s been appointed to the government’s Invest in Women taskforce. With just 2p of every £1 of business funding going to female-founded companies in the UK, Debbie’s on a mission to raise a £250 million pot to create “once in a generation change”.

Best known for selling her multi-million-pound home swap business inspired by Hollywood movie The Holiday, Debbie is hoping more women will become investors in female run start-ups. Plus, with no change on interest rates, Danni and Laura ask when the Bank of England will start to cut rates and how the status quo is pushing homeowners into mortgages they’ll still be paying off after they reach pension age.

On this episode of the pod, Danni and Laura speak to campaigner Joeli Brearley from motherhood campaigning group Pregnant then Screwed about why politicians have finally woken up to the economic value of getting mums back into work and what more needs to be done to end the motherhood penalty.

Also on the episode, Danni and Laura break down the four simple steps to start your investing journey. They give a basic checklist of the different platforms, accounts and investments available and explain some of the jargon that can be off-putting to newbie investors.