Senior Liberal women shift on gender quotas to boost gender representation

Senior female MPs have made a huge call on the Liberal Party’s persistent opposition to gender quotas – one saying they can “no longer” rule out the option.

Two senior Liberal women have left the door open for the use of gender quotas to boost female representation, with South Australian senator Anne Ruston shifting her position, stating the party can “no longer rule out the temporary use of quotas as an option”. 

The debate into a short-term gender quotas, pushed by NSW senator Maria Kovacic and former Liberal senator Linda Reynolds, has been reheated after Sussan Ley ordered state divisions to increase the number of women preselected in winnable seats.

Coalition health spokesperson Senator Ruston, who rejected gender-based quotas in 2021 and said “decisions about preselections are for the grassroots members,” loosened her stance, and said the Liberals needed to increase the number of women in its party room.

“We can no longer rule out the temporary use of quotas as an option, given we have not met our targets to date by other means,” she told NewsWire.

“We must encourage more women to join the Liberal Party, and we must get Liberal women into the parliament.”

South Australian senator Anne Ruston said the party could ‘not longer rule out’ using quotas as an option. Picture: NewsWire/ Martin Ollman

The Coalition’s spokesman for women, Melissa McIntosh said that while she was open to a gender-quotas, she wanted the topic to be “thoroughly” canvassed in the election post-mortem.

“It’s just not as simple as saying yes or no to quotas,” she said, urging the party to look at whether allocations would be implemented during preselection, or for safe or marginal seats.

“We shouldn’t be closing the door to any possible work to be done within the party, whether they are quotas, or targets … but the work should be done and then we can have an evidence based position on whether we should be adopting quotas.”

However she said a review into the party’s culture and how it treats women needs to be the “first and foremost” priority, adding that there was “no question” that the Liberals need greater female representation.

“There has to be a lot of work on the culture of the Liberal Party and the way women are treated within the Liberal Party,” she said.

“It needs to be fixed. It doesn’t really matter if we have quotas if the culture isn’t conducive to the success of women (and doesn’t allow them) to contribute to the party at all levels.”

Western Sydney MP Melissa McIntosh said she wanted quotas to be reviewed so the party could have an ‘evidence-based’ position. Picture: NewsWire/ Damian Shaw

Ms McIntosh also said more support needed to be given to women “once they get into parliamentary positions”.

She referenced a local conference ahead of the 2022 election which had been “quite aggressively taken out by blokes”.

“They challenged me for my seat, even though I’d won one election and increased the margin,” she said.

“That shouldn’t be able to happen in a party and to a parliamentarian, and it particularly shouldn’t be happening to our female MPs. We shouldn’t be feeling that insecurity within our own party.”

The tone shift comes after Coalition defence spokesman, and former Liberal leadership contender, Angus Taylor maintained that he has “never been a supporter of quotas” to increase gender representation.

“I think there are better ways of doing that, and I’ve seen that in my own business career,“ he said.

While Ms Ley has said she is “agnostic” on how state branches chose to increase gender representation ahead of the 2028 poll, the Liberal Leader said the party must “recruit better,” “retain better,” and “support better”.

Defence spokesman and former shadow treasurer Angus Taylor however said there were ‘better ways’ of increasing female representation. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Asked whether she would intervene on unruly state branches unwilling to head her call, she told reporters at National Press Club: “I’m not prepared to accept that we won’t”.

Ms Ley also emphasised the broaden the Liberal Party’s base as the Coalition rebuilds after they were “smashed” on May 3.

Speaking to the Coalition party room in Canberra on Thursday, Ms Ley told members: “Our job is to present that alternative narrative for Australians so they look at us and know that we’re a party that respects, reflects and will represent modern Australia, and we can restore their faith and trust in us”.

Nationals Leader David Littleproud said the “mob will turn” on Labor, issuing a call to arms for the party to “come out swinging,” and focus on the cost-of-living crisis still affecting Aussies.

“The mob will turn as they turn in this election, they can turn again, and when they turn, they’ll turn big time,” he said.

“So let’s come out swinging. Let’s hold this government to account, and let’s show Australians that we are here for them and we have the solutions for them.”