‘We don’t vote with our vaginas, mate’: Fiery debate erupts on Sky News

Peta Credlin blasted a Sky News colleague in a fiery on-air debate over “women-friendly” policies, declaring “we don’t vote with our vaginas”.

Sky News host Peta Credlin has warned suggestions that Peter Dutton just needs to announce some women-friendly policies to win the election are simplistic and offensive, declaring “we don’t vote with our vaginas, mate”.

In a blow up on her program on Tuesday night, Credlin took to task colleague Andrew Clennell over his suggestions over what Mr Dutton needed to win the next election.

The Sky News political editor had warned that winning “11 seats” wasn’t enough to form a Dutton government and a few women-friendly policies might help.

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“I think I’ve said to you a couple of times now, Peta, that if Peter Dutton wants to win, all he has to do is do a couple of well, not all he has to do, but one thing he can do is a couple of women-friendly policies and win over 2 or 3 per cent of that voting cohort, and he’ll be in a lot better position to form government,” Clennell said.

The discussion followed a new poll in The Australian Financial Review that revealed a sharp gender divide has opened up among younger voters, with men far more disposed towards the opposition leader than women.

Conversely, women in the same age groups are more left-leaning and more likely to vote for Labor or the Greens than the Coalition.

Sky News host Peta Credlin has clashed with her collague Andrew Clennell in a blow-up on her program on Tuesday night. Picture: Sky News

Opposition leader Peter Dutton. Picture: Sharon Smith/NCA NewsWire

But that prompted Credlin to challenge the idea that female voters could be won over by policies in a “pink folder”.

“What’s a women’s friendly policy, mate? What’s a women’s friendly policy? Do you think we don’t know about the economy? We don’t care about defence?” she asked.

“You insult our intelligence. You insult our intelligence to think we don’t care things that the men care about in the campaign.”

Clennell conceded that “I am not a woman” but suggested Mr Dutton could focus on “a couple of things in that area” and that he needed to pay attention and do something if there was a sense women “don’t like this bloke”.

“We don’t vote with our vaginas, mate,” Credlin said. “We don’t vote with our vaginas.”

“Well you’re the one who’s asking me about a gender difference, Peta. You raised it,” Clennell replied.

Credlin hit back, “Well I’m asking you about what can you read into it? And you’re saying that he’s got to have women’s policies to win women. I find that offensive. I find that offensive.”

Clennell then asked, “Well what’s your suggestion?”

“I think it’s about personality,” Credlin replied.

“It’s about the warmth. It’s about women feeling they can understand the bloke. It’s not about policies with a pink cover sheet.”

According to the recent polls, just 27 per cent of women aged 18-34 prefer Mr Dutton as Prime Minister, compared to 37 per cent of men in the same age group.

Mr Dutton says affirmative action has gone too far. Picture: Brendan Radke

Men have ‘had enough’

Mr Dutton recently warned young men “have had enough” of being painted as ogres and being passed over for promotion because of the rise of affirmative action policies that demand more women are promoted.

The Liberal leader issued the warning during an epic 90-minute sit down interview with self-made millionaire and TV star Mark Bouris on his podcast Straight Talk.

During the discussion, he also riffed on his 4.30am alarm and his meditation habits and how working in a butcher shop and as a cop shaped his outlook.

But he hinted the pendulum had swung too far on gender, insisting that nobody should be discriminated against on the basis of gender or race.

“Where does it come from? I think there are a lot of universities who have worked on this. I think it’s a movement of the left. And again, this is a business model for some people,” Mr Dutton said.

He then suggested that some young males in the US and overseas were angry and had “had enough” of diversity hiring.

“When they look at young males who are moving, I think a lot of young males feel disenfranchised and feel ostracised,” he said.

“And they’re saying, ‘Well, hang on, I have nothing but respect for women, and I would never treat my female friends differently than my male friends. But I’m being told that I’m some sort of ogre, or I have some belief structure which is true to that, which I know is, you know, what I hold in my heart.’

“I think there’s just a point where people are fed up.

“They’re pushing back and saying, ‘Well, why am I being overlooked at work for a job, you know, three jobs running when I’ve got, you know, a partner at home, and she’s decided to stay at home with three young kids, and I want a promotion at work so that I can help pay the bills at home.’ And so I think all of that has morphed.”

Originally published as ‘We don’t vote with our vaginas, mate’: Fiery debate erupts on Sky News