The Liberals no longer have a woman problem, they have a catastrophe

Julie Bishop and Kelly O'Dwyer are but two members of the Liberal Party's 80-plus strong parliamentary group but their combined departures represent an almost incalculable loss for the Liberals. And not just because the two have been such good fundraisers.

Some in the new guard may be relieved that Bishop - quietly fuming on the sidelines about last year's turmoil and a possible future leadership contender - has decided to get out. Some conservatives may likewise be pleased that O'Dwyer, with her moderate views on things like climate change, won't be around after May.

Of the six women in Malcolm Turnbull's first cabinet, one has left Parliament already, two others will leave at the election, and another resigned from the frontbench.Credit: Andrew Meares

But without Bishop and O'Dwyer, the Liberals don't just have a "woman problem", they have an out and out woman catastrophe.

Set aside the fact that Bishop was the Liberal Party's most popular MP. And that O'Dwyer, at just 41, was really just beginning to reach her potential.

Apart from Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Small Business Minister Michaelia Cash, there are no other women in the party who even approach Bishop and O'Dwyer's experience, seniority and profile.

While Payne has garnered good reviews for her work in defence and now foreign affairs, she is not well known beyond Canberra. Anyone watching Federal Court and Senate estimates proceedings relating to those Australian Workers' Union raids would have to wonder where Cash's career goes from here.

Look down the ministry list. In the cabinet section, the next woman is Industry Minister Karen Andrews, who has about six month's experience in cabinet. Then there's Melissa Price, who is likewise a cabinet fresher. A good chunk of the media attention Price has received since becoming Environment Minister has been around her absence during a summer of environmental disasters.

Of course, there are other women (Linda Reynolds, Jane Hume, Sarah Henderson, for example) who could easily rise to senior positions. But what kind of mentorship will they have? And in the meantime, what kind of brains and culture trust will the top ranks of the Liberal Party have?

When you look at the raw numbers, it is bleak: just eight out of the 24 current senators and eleven of the 58 lower house Liberal MPs are women. That eleven includes Bishop, O'Dwyer and Ann Sudmalis and Jane Prentice who have not been pre-selected for the next election. It also includes Henderson, Lucy Wicks and Nicole Flint who will struggle to keep their seats.

Julie Bishop and Kelly O'Dwyer embrace after the former foreign minister announced her retirement from politics. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

And that's before you get the allegations about intra-party bullying raised by former Liberal MP, turned independent, Julia Banks.

In 2016, the Liberal Party formally acknowledged it had a problem and set a goal of 50 per cent female candidates by 2025. Last year, even party president Nick Greiner conceded it would be "tough" to reach it.

Bishop and O'Dwyer have signalled they must be replaced by female candidates in their blue ribbon seats. This is obviously a start, but is nowhere near enough.

Heading into the election, this will be an area in which Labor - with 46 per cent female representation - is not just streets, but whole boulevards ahead.