Tuesday, 8 March 2022

Women in politics

Mrs McARTHUR (Western Victoria) (19:34): (1786) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Women and concerns Labor’s accuracy and honesty in reporting the true history of women in politics in Australia. After hearing Anika Wells, the federal Labor member for Lilley, on this International Women’s Day claim this morning that Ros Kelly was Australia’s first female minister when it was actually Dame Enid Lyons in the Menzies government, I had to dig out my list of non-Labor firsts. Now, Ros Kelly was the first Labor female minister, because while Menzies had women in his cabinet, Whitlam had none in his.

Perhaps I can advise the Parliament of some non-Labor firsts in Australia’s political history: the first female federal cabinet minister without portfolio, the Honourable Dame Enid Lyons in 1951; the first female federal minister with portfolio, the Honourable Dame Annabelle Rankin; the first female in any Parliament, Edith Cowan OBE from Western Australia; the first female in Queensland Parliament, Irene Longman in 1929; the first female in the Victorian Parliament, Lady Millie Peacock; the first female federal MP, the Honourable Dame Enid Lyons; the first female senator from Queensland, the Honourable Dame Annabelle Rankin; the first female cabinet minister in Australia—Western Australia this was—the Honourable Dame Florence Cardell-Oliver; the first female mayor in Queensland, Nell Robinson OBE, mayor of Toowoomba; the first federal female cabinet minister with portfolio, the Honourable Dame Margaret Guilfoyle AC, DBE; the first female Lord Mayor of Brisbane, Sallyanne Atkinson AO; the first female Lord Mayor of Sydney, Lucy Turnbull AO; the first female party leader in South Australia, Isobel Redmond; the first female Speaker of the Tasmanian House of Assembly, the Honourable Elise Archer; and the first popularly elected female Premier of New South Wales, the Honourable Gladys Berejiklian. The action I seek of the minister is to ensure that there is historical accuracy in the acknowledgement of all women leaders and not just those who may represent the ALP.