Women allowed to vote ay upcoming Catholic bishop conference, thanks to Pope Francis

Women will have the right to vote at an upcoming influential global meeting of bishops thanks to the work of Pope Francis.

The new rules will give five religious sisters voting powers at the event, which is a papal advisory body.

Women have only ever been allowed to attend the gathering as observers.

Men will still hold the majority but the reforms are seen as a significant shift for the Roman Catholic Church, which has been male-dominated for centuries.

The U.S.-based Women’s Ordination Conference has called the reform “a significant crack in the stained glass ceiling”.

The body hopes the gathering continues to develop into a fully representative body of the people of God.