Does Sussan Ley’s first question time signal the end of the gender card in politics?

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley in question time on Wednesday. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

You can now listen to The Australian's articles. Give us your feedback.

You can now listen to The Australian's articles.

It was Wednesday, so coincidentally Sussan Ley wore pink.

This was no Mean Girls homage. She parked her trademark bluster at the dispatch box for her first question as the first ­female ­opposition leader.

Her usual chamber carry on, displayed during previous parliaments for close to quarter of a century resulting in many 94a early exits, was muted.

If she was nervous as history beckoned the first female leader of the Liberal-National Coalition and the first female opposition leader to take the first call of question time, she didn’t show it.

After waltzing into the lower house with a Charlie’s Angels swagger, flanked – performatively – by her female colleagues Melissa Parke and Angie Bell, Ley sent a message.

A coded one to the faceless men and women in her party who only just elevated her to leader, and a more obvious one to the government. On her watch, question time will be focused on Menzies’ Forgotten People and on-brand for the party of aspiration.

She opened by aligning herself, economically at least, with John Howard and Paul Keating with queries to the Prime Minister on “broken election promises” over home ownership and tax reform.

Anthony Albanese’s smirk said it all. There will be no sniping from him, not today at least.

“Ah no, well, I’ve got a job to do, my job is to represent the government, you know, I’ll leave the opposition to engage with each other in whatever way they choose to do so,” the Prime Minister said when asked by the media why he didn’t engage with Ley.

It’s my first Question Time as Opposition Leader, and my experienced team is ready. pic.twitter.com/LASeADucrp

— Sussan Ley (@sussanley) July 23, 2025

Ms Ley and Anthony Albanese in question time on Wednesday. Picture: Martin Ollman / NewsWire

If there’s going to be a fight, he’ll be taking a more hands-off mob boss Tony Soprano approach and let his associates do all the heavy lifting as the country adjusts to the end of the era of firsts in the people’s house.

Wednesday made herstory. We saw the first female opposition leader, the first female MP with a disability, the first woman to roll an opposition leader and the first woman to end the career of a minor party leader all take their place as the 48th parliament started ticking off items on its legislative agenda.

In this post-#MeToo world, it will be a while before Albanese feels comfortable enough to relate to Ley like he did with his former sparring partner, the man he once called Peter “Boof Head” Dutton. Or tell female opposition MPs to file their questions “in her mug bucket”, like he did to former deputy Liberal leader Julie Bishop.

Other elements of politics past were subtly switched up. Minister for Small Business Anne Aly sat on the government frontbench with a Malcolm Turnbull leather jacket draped around her shoulders.

Julia Gillard’s misogyny speech was then evoked by the blokes.

Jim Chalmers and Assistant Treasurer Daniel Mulino thundered across the aisle that they will not be lectured about a litany of ­issues like tax policy, economic ­reform and nuclear energy. Not by men like Nationals leader David Littleproud and deputy Liberal leader Ted O’Brien, at least.

“Some things never change,” Speaker Milton Dick sighed as the final first in federal politics ended.

Oh, but how they still could Mr Speaker. Chalmers’ money man nemesis Andrew Charlton could find himself waiting in the wings a little longer, because coming up on gender card bingo: Australia’s first female Treasurer.