Monica Threlfall is a Reader in European Politics at the Institute for the Study of European Transformations, London Metropolitan University. Previously she was a Politics Lecturer at Loughborough University (1996-2008) and South Bank University (1986-1995), and a research fellow at Birkbeck College. The main theme of her research has been the relationship between less privileged groups of citizens, especially women, and their state. Recent publications include: Taxation Without Representation: How Much Does It Hurt? (2012) and Citizens’ preferences for their political representation: A qualitative study of the UK, Spain, Poland and Macedonia (2011).