news, federal-politics

Conservative Liberal powerbroker Alex Hawke says his party should consider quotas to improve the Liberals' low levels of female representation in Parliament. In comments that will reopen a polarising debate within the party, the Special Minister of State says he does not oppose quotas if they are "intelligently applied". Mr Hawke said the low number of women within the Liberals' federal ranks was a "huge problem" for the party. "We will suffer as a political movement if we don't get serious about [electing] women," he told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Mr Hawke's call comes as new Defence Industry Minister Linda Reynolds said her promotion showed quotas were not needed. Reflecting on the fact that Prime Minister Scott Morrison's cabinet now has a record seven female MPs, Senator Reynolds said the message to Liberal women was: "If you are good enough, you could get in [to cabinet]." "I have been appointed not because of my gender but because of my experience, and we have got many other women who equally are capable," she said on Saturday. Just eight of the Liberal Party's 24 senators and 11 of the 58 lower house MPs are women. The lower house group includes at least three female MPs who will struggle to hold their seats at the upcoming election, as well as Ann Sudmalis and Jane Prentice, who have been replaced by male candidates. Mr Hawke, who is a close ally of Mr Morrison, says the Liberal Party has become "stuck" around debating the issue of quotas, rather than the issue of women's representation itself. "That's not helpful," he said. "I don't really oppose quotas anymore, as long as they're intelligently applied," Mr Hawke said, adding they should not be "universally applied" or "blunt" . He suggested quotas could be implemented in a pool system. For example, if there were a grouping of four preselections for safe seats, two of those should go to women. The Liberal Party has long opposed the idea of quotas, arguing they are a Labor Party concept and women should be appointed on merit. Former prime minister John Howard has described quotas as patronising. But some Liberals have begun to entertain the idea. The party's most senior woman in Parliament, Foreign Minister Marise Payne, who is a feminist and moderate, said as recently as January, "I don't support or oppose quotas". This came as frontbencher Sussan Ley called on the NSW branch of the party to adopt a quota for women, based on a "sensible number". Victorian Liberal senator Jane Hume has advocated a "Liberal alternative" to quotas. The Liberals have a non-enforceable target of 50 per cent female candidates by 2025, but senior members of the party, including federal president Nick Greiner, concede it will be tough to meet. NSW Liberal senator Arthur Sinodinos, who is not an advocate of quotas, said the party needed to be able to "signal to the electorate that you're modern and contemporary. What is necessary is for the party to collectively say, 'We will do this.' " Senator Reynolds replaces retiring cabinet minister Steven Ciobo. The previous record of six female cabinet members was first achieved by Kevin Rudd and then equalled by Malcolm Turnbull and Mr Morrison. "This now makes our cabinet the strongest level of female representation in the history of federation, and that is something that I would intend to continue should we be elected at the election in May," Mr Morrison said on Saturday. The Prime Minister's comments could pave the way for Ms Ley to return to the frontbench. The NSW MP resigned from cabinet in early 2017 following an expenses scandal, but was made an assistant minister by Mr Morrison after the leadership change last year. When asked on Saturday about numbers of women in his party, Mr Morrison said there was a "very strong story to tell. "Since I have become Prime Minister, 18 women have been selected in either Senate or House of Representatives seats." Mr Hawke similarly said the party was making progress to elect more women. He pointed to key marginal seats in western Sydney where women have recently been preselected. Community housing executive Melissa McIntosh was preselected for Linsday in December. Local councillor Sarah Richards was chosen late last year for the must-win seat of Macquarie. Last weekend, paediatrician Katie Allen won preselection in outgoing Jobs Minister Kelly O'Dwyer's blue ribbon Melbourne seat of Higgins. Former army officer Vince Connelly controversially won preselection in the West Australian seat of Stirling in a field that also included four women. The Labor Party introduced quotas in the 1990s and its federal caucus is now 46 per cent female. On Saturday, Labor's foreign affairs spokesperson, Penny Wong, said the Liberal Party had a "problem with preselecting women". "They seem to have a problem with promoting women. They seem to have a problem with actually having women in their party room."

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