logo
Liberal Party still hampered by continuing lack of female representation

Liberal Party still hampered by continuing lack of female representation

The Liberal Party has been told it has a women problem for years now.
But you only have to look at its results in Western Australia to see how it is struggling to make progress.
In the west, the party ran candidates in all 16 of the state's federal seats.
Just four were women, compared to Labor's eight.

Only one of them will be going to Canberra, incumbent Durack MP Melissa Price.
The other three were selected to run for seats considered unwinnable.
In the six seats where the Liberals considered themselves competitive, all candidates were men.
In contrast, Labor had a 50-50 split between men and women among its candidates.
Michaelia Cash is WA's only female Liberal representative in the Senate.
(
ABC News: Ian Cutmore
)
It's not much better for the Liberals in the Senate where Michaelia Cash is the state's only female Liberal representative, albeit a senior one.
Photo shows
Former Liberal Senator and Defence Minister Linda Reynolds speaks about the Liberals 2025 federal election defeat
Retiring Liberal senator Linda Reynolds labels the party's federal election campaign a "comprehensive failure", and blasts it for not doing more to increase female representation.
The problem hasn't escaped attention among some in the party, including outgoing Senator Linda Reynolds.
She described her frustration at working on a gender review for the party a decade ago, which she said "just sat on a shelf".
"As a female, all I see in the Liberal Party is an ocean of males," one listener texted in to ABC Radio Perth during a discussion involving Ms Reynolds.
Linda Reynolds says the Liberals have to understand why women have turned away from them.
(
ABC News: Jake Sturmer
)
"I totally agree," she replied.
Not just a federal problem
A similar issue can be seen at a state level.
Of the six new Liberals elected to the lower house of state parliament, only one — Cottesloe MP Sandra Brewer — was a woman.
Successful Liberal state election candidate Sandra Brewer watches on as Libby Mettam gives her concession speech at the March election.
(
ABC News: Jake Sturmer
)
In fairness to the party, that seat was as safe as they got.
Even still, the other five new lower house Liberal MPs were men.
Four years ago, the party's review of its diabolical 2021 election result found "the current representation is inadequate, is detrimental to the full potential of the party, is inconsistent with our values and must be addressed".
Photo shows
A close-up of Peter Dutton looking slightly past the camera
The Liberals' 2022 election review couldn't be clearer. What is less comprehensible is the party's decision to initiate a policy reform in the 2025 campaign that could not have been better designed to infuriate women.
"Until this is accepted by all members, nothing will change," the reviewers wrote.
At both the state and federal elections, as the numbers show, little changed in the pre-selection of candidates and so little has changed in the result.
But it wasn't always this way.
"When the Liberal Party was formed, we were the progressive national party," Ms Reynolds said.
"Not as in progressive now as we understand it as more woke, but progressive as standing for women.
"And in fact until 2001 the majority of Australian women voted for the Liberal Party, and that seems almost inconceivable now.
"So we have to understand why women have turned away from our party and change."
The hard path forward
The party's post-mortem of its federal loss in 2022 identified a number of issues.
"A sense that the Liberal Party is failing to adequately represent the values and priorities of women" and "a lack of confidence that women within the party would be encouraged to hold leadership positions" topped the list.
Perceptions like that are difficult to turn around, even with concerted action.
And views of the issue's importance differ within the party.
Melissa Price says for her female representation is not at the top of the list of issues the Liberals need to address.
(
ABC News: Chris Lewis
)
"We need to look at it seriously but, you know, I don't think that's the only thing we need to look at seriously," was the view of the WA Liberals' sole federal lower house MP, Melissa Price, speaking on ABC WA Regional Drive.
"
There's a lot of red flags with this election that I would say female representation wouldn't be at the top for me.
"
Ms Price pointed to the number of female candidates the party had at both the state and federal elections as a sign of progress but acknowledged not all won their seats.
Regardless of where its importance is ranked, there is a path forward.
Supporters of Tangney Liberal candidate Howard Ong listen to Peter Dutton conceding defeat on Saturday night.
(
ABC News: Keane Bourke
)
"The continued lack of progress on gender parity suggests the Liberal Party needs to do more to actively engage with the women who are already active members of the party and engage with leaders across civic and political organisations that already exist within the community," La Trobe University PhD candidate Phoebe Hayman wrote in The Conversation last week.
"Members may be their most important resource in achieving parliamentary gender parity.
"However, achieving this means first having women in the room."
Many Liberal supporters were shocked by the election outcome.
(
ABC News: Courtney Withers
)
Of course, that is significantly easier said than done, especially when the party risks locking itself in a downward spiral in which fewer women put their hands up because of the poor experiences of those who have gone before them.
One silver lining of that recommended road ahead though is that the party engaging with community leaders would have a dual benefit — increasing its chances of recruiting more women, and bringing it closer to understanding what the community wants from its representatives.
A 'sliding doors' moment
Another benefit, some would hope, of that shift would be stemming the tide of women who might have otherwise been Liberal candidates running as teal independents.
Often put in that group is
Kate Chaney says many women don't believe the Liberal Party represents them.
(
ABC News: Keane Bourke
)
Liberal blood runs through her veins. Her uncle is Fred Chaney, the former federal deputy Liberal leader, and her grandfather, Fred Chaney Snr, was a minister in the Menzies government.
While Chaney said on Monday she never considered going into politics before running as an independent, she recognised the party's problems with women.
"When the Liberal Party knocked back Julie Bishop [for leader] and chose Scott Morrison instead, I think that was a sliding doors moment,"
she said.
"And a lot of women looked at that point and thought, 'this does not look like a party that represents me'."
The party's decision to pick Scott Morrison over Julie Bishop has been called a "sliding doors moment".
(
ABC News: Matt Roberts
)
Despite the threat it poses to her political future, even Chaney hopes the party can "have a good look at what a pathway into politics looks like for women" and avoid irrelevance by representing more Australians.
Only a 'small window to act'
While there are many facets to the Liberal Party's demolition at the election, the solution to winning back support is simple.
Read more about the federal election:
Want even more? Here's where you can find all our 2025
Catch the latest interviews and in-depth coverage on
Be more relevant to voters.
Understanding half the population and properly representing them is a big part of that equation.
The party cannot say it has not been warned about the task ahead.
"The only way the Liberal Party can win enough seats to form majority government again is to win back the support of women," Reynolds wrote in support of gender quotas after the 2022 election.
"The quiet approach has not worked.
"We have a small window to act, and we must."
Time will only shrink that window further.
Any progress, or lack of action, is a choice made by its membership.
Loading

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

AUKUS defence pact 'being reviewed' by US government
AUKUS defence pact 'being reviewed' by US government

Perth Now

time37 minutes ago

  • Perth Now

AUKUS defence pact 'being reviewed' by US government

The US government is reportedly reviewing the AUKUS trilateral defence agreement between Australia, the UK and the US. The decision to conduct a review has been reported by multiple news outlets including Reuters, which cited US defence officials without giving further details. The review will reportedly examine whether the pact is in line with US President Donald Trump's 'America First' policy, according to the ABC which also cited a Pentagon source. AUKUS is a three-nation security alliance between Australia, the UK and the US agreed in 2021 under the prime ministership of ex-Liberal leader Scott Morrison. It was formed to counter China's strategic moves in the Pacific arena and was underpinned by an agreement between the US and the UK to provide Australia with access to nuclear-powered submarine technology, to eventually replace its aging Collins-class boats. The deal is worth hundreds of billions of dollars, although the first submarine is not expected to join the Australian fleet for years. Australia, which in February made the first of six $US500 million (about $800 million) payments to the US for the boats, is expected to initially buy between three and five off-the-shelf Virginia-class boats. At the time, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Mr Trump was supportive of the AUKUS deal. "The president is very aware, supportive of AUKUS," Mr Hegseth said after a meeting with Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles. "(He) recognises the importance of the defence industrial base." Mr Marles responded that the pair had discussed how the US and Australia could advance their longstanding diplomatic relationship in terms of national security, including AUKUS. Australia's military budget is expected to rise to 2.3 per cent of gross domestic product, or output, by 2034. The US regime has already called for Australia to increase that spending to around 3.5 per cent. Australia tore up its $90 billion diesel-powered submarine deal with France to sign on to AUKUS and is contracted to buy several off-the-shelf submarines costing about $US4 billion each, before making its own. The first Australian-made boats are not due to be operational until the 2040s.

AUKUS defence pact 'being reviewed' by US government
AUKUS defence pact 'being reviewed' by US government

West Australian

time40 minutes ago

  • West Australian

AUKUS defence pact 'being reviewed' by US government

The US government is reportedly reviewing the AUKUS trilateral defence agreement between Australia, the UK and the US. The decision to conduct a review has been reported by multiple news outlets including Reuters, which cited US defence officials without giving further details. The review will reportedly examine whether the pact is in line with US President Donald Trump's 'America First' policy, according to the ABC which also cited a Pentagon source. AUKUS is a three-nation security alliance between Australia, the UK and the US agreed in 2021 under the prime ministership of ex-Liberal leader Scott Morrison. It was formed to counter China's strategic moves in the Pacific arena and was underpinned by an agreement between the US and the UK to provide Australia with access to nuclear-powered submarine technology, to eventually replace its aging Collins-class boats. The deal is worth hundreds of billions of dollars, although the first submarine is not expected to join the Australian fleet for years. Australia, which in February made the first of six $US500 million (about $800 million) payments to the US for the boats, is expected to initially buy between three and five off-the-shelf Virginia-class boats. At the time, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Mr Trump was supportive of the AUKUS deal. "The president is very aware, supportive of AUKUS," Mr Hegseth said after a meeting with Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles. "(He) recognises the importance of the defence industrial base." Mr Marles responded that the pair had discussed how the US and Australia could advance their longstanding diplomatic relationship in terms of national security, including AUKUS. Australia's military budget is expected to rise to 2.3 per cent of gross domestic product, or output, by 2034. The US regime has already called for Australia to increase that spending to around 3.5 per cent. Australia tore up its $90 billion diesel-powered submarine deal with France to sign on to AUKUS and is contracted to buy several off-the-shelf submarines costing about $US4 billion each, before making its own. The first Australian-made boats are not due to be operational until the 2040s.

Tasmanian election called for July 19, but both Liberals and Labor hamstrung on key issues
Tasmanian election called for July 19, but both Liberals and Labor hamstrung on key issues

ABC News

time44 minutes ago

  • ABC News

Tasmanian election called for July 19, but both Liberals and Labor hamstrung on key issues

After a nail-biting few days of "will they, won't they, could they, should they," Tasmania's very, very early election is full-steam ahead. Except this one can't exactly be full steam, can it? After all, it's an election that nobody wanted brought on for a variety of reasons, including the dire state of Tasmania's budget situation. That was one of the reasons for Labor's successful no-confidence motion in Premier Jeremy Rockliff. Imagine making that a sticking point and then throwing cash at a bunch of bowls clubs (they're always on the funding list). If the major parties want to look like they're serious about getting Tasmania's finances back on track, they are going to need to avoid any form of pork barrelling. No matter how tempting. The Liberals have been accused of it the past three elections. Their response is to deny it's happening and insist they're simply listening to the community. Labor also made promises to sports clubs last election, but the plan was to have government departments "rigorously" assess them all before the funds were handed out. On top of that, Labor has said it wants to ban pork barrelling as part of its plan to fix the budget, it would be rather hypocritical to engage in it itself. But it's not just pork barrelling that arguably needs to go. Even a competitive sports grants process, which would otherwise be welcomed, could be a little on the nose, given the state barely has a cent to spare. And we all know that pool of money would not be up for grabs if it were not for an election. The other issue is the Liberals have just put out a budget. We know what they were planning to spend the money on, and where. Sure, they can change some things up — but how many sweeteners can they really surprise us with? So if they can't focus it on all the cash they want to drop, or their savings plans, that leaves policy. The Liberals have already begun to rethink theirs. Starting with privatisation. The premier announced just last Saturday the Liberals will not privatise any state-owned companies, and will in fact legislate so a two-thirds majority of parliament is required to sell them. Clearly they know going to an election with a "we want to explore privatisation" agenda is unlikely to win them many fans. It was also one of the reasons listed on the no-confidence motion. But how many other unpopular policies can they really rethink? The May decision to walk away from a treaty process was deeply unpopular among some Aboriginal groups, but there's no policy fix for the bungled process around the new Spirit of Tasmania ferry terminal, for example. The party's most unpopular position, an undying support for the almost billion-dollar Macquarie Point stadium, is unlikely to change. Lucky for the Liberals, Labor has taken the same stance, so it can't be used against them by the only other party viable to form government. But while the Liberals are trying to reconsider policies, Labor is going to need to come up with some (more). The party has been grappling with being stuck in the political wilderness for over a decade now. It lost the last election just 15 months ago. Badly. So, naturally, all policies are under review. With a little more notice of this election, it might have spent some time polishing them off, but it is partially responsible for this mess after all. When it comes to offering up something fresh, Labor's got the advantage of having a new leader, and as Dean Winter likes to remind everyone, "Labor has changed under me". Now is his time to really prove it. He certainly gained some kudos from the public for bringing the Spirit of Tasmania saga to light and has made it clear that the party backs workers. His mantra is almost "jobs, jobs, jobs". But the party still needs to figure out its position on a lot of issues. For example, just last month Mr Winter could not say if Labor was for or against a treaty. His argument was he could not take a side without consultation, but the issue is not exactly new. And Mr Winter has to transition from criticism to having solutions — fast. And answer questions such as whether Labor still wants to pause new permits for whole-home short-stay accommodation. Unclear. Or, what the plan is to cut the amount the state pays on locum doctors? Or, how it would go about closing the Ashley Youth Detention Centre if it's suddenly thrust into power. It is also a rare day when the party talks about what used to be some of its core issues — health, housing and education. And while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese talks about the need to balance industries and the environment, Mr Winter's pro-industry mantra can come across as "jobs at any cost". But where there is a void, there is always someone else happy to fill it. In this case, that is the Greens and other environmentally conscious crossbenchers. The same goes for the stadium. It is the crossbench who will be rewarded for their anti-stadium stance, and if the polls are anything to go by, it is a large crowd to capitalise on. But for how many Tasmanians will the stadium be their number one issue? Considering the Liberals' stuff-ups are fresh in people's minds, and Labor is copping a lot of the blame for the early election, the crossbench could very well benefit from voters' frustrations. But Tasmanians annoyed about the election also have a reason to take their anger out on the crossbench. Because, as much as the Greens and other independents like to spruik the power and benefits of minority parliament, most of them played a hand in blowing up that parliament less than halfway through its term. How can voters trust that won't happen again soon? Little about this election is going to be normal. But like it or not, in just over a month's time we're being dragged to the polls. No-one is coming into this unscathed and the end result is still anyone's game. Whatever the result, those 35 politicians owe it to Tasmanians to make it work for longer than 15 months, whatever it takes.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store