“A new report from the European Commission looks at the number of women in leadership positions in the European Union. While the Commission points to the evidence that more women are reaching top positions, it underlines the fact that more needs to be done to tackle a significant disparity across EU Member States. It says the under-representation of women in corporate decision-making represents a significant economic cost to companies and to the economy as a whole. Regulation at EU level may be the only way to solve the problem.  The European Commission (EC) has published a report, Women and men in leadership positions in the European Union 2013. Drawing on data up to the end of June 2013, it reviews the current situation and reports on recent progress. The report notes that equality between women and men is a fundamental principle of the European Union (EU) and one of its main objectives. However, despite good progress over the past few decades, gender inequalities in leadership positions remain and the pace of change in some Member States is relatively slow. The EC has made gender equality in decision-making one of five priority areas in the Commission’s Women’s Charter and the EU’s Strategy for Equality between Women and Men 2010–2015.”