Federal election 2016: PM praises Fiona Scott’s brains, not beauty

For Tony Abbott it was ‘sex appeal’ that made Fiona Scott a good candidate; for Malcolm Turnbull it is her intellect.

Fiona Scott and Malcolm Turnbull in western Sydney yesterday.

For Tony Abbott it was “sex appeal” that made Fiona Scott an attractive candidate. For Malcolm Turnbull it is her intellect and passionate advocacy for her western Sydney seat of Lindsay.

Either way, Ms Scott has again found herself in the spotlight on the campaign trail, this time while standing alongside the Prime Minister at an event in Emu Plains.

With Ms Scott under fire for her alleged betrayal of Mr Abbott in last year’s leadership spill, Mr Turnbull seized the opportunity to talk-up the candidate. “Fiona Scott ... is an outstanding representative for Lindsay, an outstanding representative of this community,” he said.

“She was educated at the University of Western Sydney, where she did a business degree, and then … she went on to get an MBA at the top business school in Australia. She is a formidable member of our team.”

Addressing Ms Scott, the Prime Minister praised the Penrith MP’s advocacy for the community. “The intellect you bring to bear, the experience you bring to bear and the passionate advocacy is so important,” he said.

“You bring to the task of representing this community an understanding of business, an understanding of economics that enables you to be a powerful voice in the federal parliament.”

The comments were in contrast to the appraisal given by Mr Abbott during the 2013 campaign when he was asked about the attributes Ms Scott shared with the former Liberal member Jackie Kelly.

“They’re young, feisty, I think I can probably say have a bit of sex appeal,’’ Mr Abbott said, prompting widespread criticism that the comment was sexist.