The Liberals need to be sufficiently assertive to fix their gender problem. Allow me to woman-splain
The gag – made to a virtual meeting of the NSW Liberal Women's Council, during a discussion about female representation – didn't land with the crowd.
But surely I was not the only one tickled when reading reports of the comments a few days after they were made. It was the use of the adverb 'sufficiently' which most amused me – the idea that female assertiveness has an allocation, and that the allocation had been filled, as decreed by Stockdale.
It helped that the news report was illustrated with a photograph of Stockdale (80) and his co-chair, former Howard government minister Richard Alston (84), seated in front of a portrait of Liberal Party founder Robert Menzies – an earnest trio of white-haired gerontocrats. Stockdale's right hand was poised in the air, as though caught mid-mansplain.
Last year former Liberal leader Peter Dutton appointed Stockdale, Alston, and former NSW MP Peta Seaton as administrators to run the NSW division.
The NSW branch was deemed incapable of managing itself after its failure to nominate 144 candidates for local government elections in September (they had one job, etc). But after Stockdale's comments were widely leaked, the male party veterans had to go.
Ironically, their ouster (official reason given: they were too Victorian to help in NSW) only helped to prove the truth of Stockdale's remarks. It seemed very much like they were forced to quit their posts because, well, they came across a lot like out-of-touch old white guys.
In lamenting his own victimhood, Stockdale ended up proving his own point.
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The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
Hanson tests Coalition resolve on net zero
'We are the Reform of [Australia] because everything that Nigel Farage stands for, I've been talking about for years, for nearly 30 years.' Hanson's anti-immigration party, which has courted controversy for decades for its stances on minority groups, added two senators at the May election, doubling its number of seats. Joyce's campaign has gained support from backbenchers Garth Hamilton, Tony Pasin, Alex Antic, a slew of Nationals, and the expanded right-wing Senate bloc of One Nation and United Australia Party's Ralph Babet. Frontbencher Andrew Hastie has also been fighting internally to overturn the net zero pledge, with the policy currently under review within the Coalition. Liberals have also spoken out about Indigenous welcome ceremonies after Ley indicated support for the practice. And in another sign of internal angst, former frontbencher Sarah Henderson argued in last week's private party room meeting that the Coalition should adopt as formal policy a push by Antic to enshrine in law the existence of only two genders. Henderson declined to comment. Taken together, the thrusts underline the depth of feeling among right-wing Coalition MPs as Ley aims to correct course from the perceived failings of the Dutton era. Institute of Public Affairs deputy head Daniel Wild said in Australia, as in the UK, there was a growing gap between the wishes of right-wing voters and the offerings of centre-right parties on cultural issues, immigration and green energy. 'What you're now seeing is a new bloc, whether it's people from One Nation or Barnaby Joyce, and others, giving voice to those concerns in a way that they haven't before,' Wild said. 'I don't think Liberals are going to die out, but I think the risk of irrelevancy is increasing.' Hume, one of only two Liberals to vote against Hanson's motion, pushed back against the One Nation leader, saying voters 'made it clear at the ballot box that they expect serious, credible action on climate change'. 'How can we keep the seats we have and win back the seats we've lost, without hearing that message?' she said. The UN's chief climate diplomat has urged Australia to continue its push towards net zero, warning that failure to stabilise the climate would cut living standards $7000 per person per year by 2050. 'Climate disasters are already costing Australian home owners $4 billion a year – and that figure is only going one way,' said Simon Stiell, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Outspoken conservative backbencher Hamilton warned of the risks of a Labor-lite agenda. 'We need to be wary of what's happened to our sister party in the UK,' he said, cautioning that Australia's preferential and compulsory system provided some protection from a third-party takeover. Loading Hamilton said public debate on the Coalition's direction should not be silenced, arguing Dutton did not lose because Australians rejected conservative values, but rather because of the Coalition's deficient policy agenda. Hanson said she was open to picking off Coalition MPs who felt uncomfortable with Ley's more centrist approach that has seen her spruik the case for quotas for preselecting women, dump the idea of building nuclear plants, and install Paul Scarr – who on Monday highlighted the positives of migration – into the immigration portfolio. The Nationals and Liberal Party briefly split after the election. During that period, Liberal MPs discussed privately the prospect of creating a new city-based party to espouse small-l liberal values unencumbered by conservative regional MPs. Scott Morrison canvassed the idea among his close colleagues after the 2022 election, according to several sources involved in those talks who did not want to be identified. Political historian Paul Strangio, an emeritus professor at Monash University, said Ley's message of modernising the party risked her being received 'as a kind of apostate'. 'Diagnosing what needs to be done doesn't mean Ley can magic away a quarter of a century of a conservative populist creep by the Liberals dating back to the Howard era that in essence has involved the party fighting a rearguard action against the evolving direction of Australian society,' he said. 'The resistance she will inevitably encounter is already evident in the incipient revolt within the Coalition against a net zero carbon emissions target. 'A major question looms over whether Ley has the requisite network of allies, intellectual and rhetorical force, strategic nous and fortitude to perform the diabolically difficult task of reversing 25 years of rightwards Liberal drift.'
The Advertiser
2 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Coalition splinters as heat rises on net-zero policy
A key climate target might be dumped by the coalition as an increasing number of Liberals cast doubt over the future of the opposition's commitment to net zero. Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce on Monday launched a bid to repeal the net-zero emissions by 2050 reduction target. But his private member's bill is guaranteed to fail, because it lacks the support of the government which has a majority in the House of Representatives. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley maintains the coalition will wait until after a review of its disastrous May election loss before making formal policy decisions. Despite a growing number of Liberal politicians speaking out against stronger climate change action, she doubled down on waiting for the review. "We're going to bring all of those views together ... to flesh out the different perspectives, the expert advice and, of course, focus on this government's miserable failure when it comes to energy policy," she told Sky News. Asked about the political impact of dumping the climate target, Ms Ley said she would not foreshadow the review's outcome. Many Liberal moderates want the net-zero target retained so the party is seen to be taking climate action seriously. But Mr Joyce said there was no reason why abandoning the targets should be off the table. "This is not about leadership. This is not about trying to create some sort of discordant note," he told reporters ahead of the bill's introduction. "There's not anything in this bill that the coalition didn't have the same position we voted for." Mr Joyce has the backing of his former leadership rival Michael McCormack. The two ex-deputy prime ministers are critical of Nationals leader David Littleproud's handling of the aftermath of the election defeat. The coalition reunited at the end of May following a messy week-long split driven by divisions which included energy policy. Climate Change Authority chair Matt Kean, a former deputy leader of the NSW Liberal Party, said "political stunts are no substitutes for real policies". "The voters overwhelmingly gave their verdict on Labor's climate policies, compared with the coalition's, and if Labor's massive majority doesn't send out mandate signals, well you're probably not paying attention," he said. Mr Littleproud's leadership was contested after the election over the party's adoption of the climate target. Liberal MP Garth Hamilton has also backed Nationals MPs trying to jettison the climate target. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson launched her own bid to scrap net zero in the upper house on Monday. But the coalition largely stood united against the issue, with only Nationals senator Matt Canavan and firebrand Liberal Alex Antic voting with the minor party on the motion. Senator Canavan had said One Nation was "catching up" to his colleagues in the Nationals party, specifically Mr Joyce. "I give him credit for doing this: he's put it on the agenda, he's dominating the media discussions," he told the Senate. "We are here to make laws, not just statements, so we've got to repeal this rubbish." Only five out of the coalition's 27 senators showed up for the motion, but one was in the chair and exercised his right not to vote, while Liberal senators Jane Hume and Andrew McLachlan voted against it. A key climate target might be dumped by the coalition as an increasing number of Liberals cast doubt over the future of the opposition's commitment to net zero. Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce on Monday launched a bid to repeal the net-zero emissions by 2050 reduction target. But his private member's bill is guaranteed to fail, because it lacks the support of the government which has a majority in the House of Representatives. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley maintains the coalition will wait until after a review of its disastrous May election loss before making formal policy decisions. Despite a growing number of Liberal politicians speaking out against stronger climate change action, she doubled down on waiting for the review. "We're going to bring all of those views together ... to flesh out the different perspectives, the expert advice and, of course, focus on this government's miserable failure when it comes to energy policy," she told Sky News. Asked about the political impact of dumping the climate target, Ms Ley said she would not foreshadow the review's outcome. Many Liberal moderates want the net-zero target retained so the party is seen to be taking climate action seriously. But Mr Joyce said there was no reason why abandoning the targets should be off the table. "This is not about leadership. This is not about trying to create some sort of discordant note," he told reporters ahead of the bill's introduction. "There's not anything in this bill that the coalition didn't have the same position we voted for." Mr Joyce has the backing of his former leadership rival Michael McCormack. The two ex-deputy prime ministers are critical of Nationals leader David Littleproud's handling of the aftermath of the election defeat. The coalition reunited at the end of May following a messy week-long split driven by divisions which included energy policy. Climate Change Authority chair Matt Kean, a former deputy leader of the NSW Liberal Party, said "political stunts are no substitutes for real policies". "The voters overwhelmingly gave their verdict on Labor's climate policies, compared with the coalition's, and if Labor's massive majority doesn't send out mandate signals, well you're probably not paying attention," he said. Mr Littleproud's leadership was contested after the election over the party's adoption of the climate target. Liberal MP Garth Hamilton has also backed Nationals MPs trying to jettison the climate target. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson launched her own bid to scrap net zero in the upper house on Monday. But the coalition largely stood united against the issue, with only Nationals senator Matt Canavan and firebrand Liberal Alex Antic voting with the minor party on the motion. Senator Canavan had said One Nation was "catching up" to his colleagues in the Nationals party, specifically Mr Joyce. "I give him credit for doing this: he's put it on the agenda, he's dominating the media discussions," he told the Senate. "We are here to make laws, not just statements, so we've got to repeal this rubbish." Only five out of the coalition's 27 senators showed up for the motion, but one was in the chair and exercised his right not to vote, while Liberal senators Jane Hume and Andrew McLachlan voted against it. A key climate target might be dumped by the coalition as an increasing number of Liberals cast doubt over the future of the opposition's commitment to net zero. Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce on Monday launched a bid to repeal the net-zero emissions by 2050 reduction target. But his private member's bill is guaranteed to fail, because it lacks the support of the government which has a majority in the House of Representatives. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley maintains the coalition will wait until after a review of its disastrous May election loss before making formal policy decisions. Despite a growing number of Liberal politicians speaking out against stronger climate change action, she doubled down on waiting for the review. "We're going to bring all of those views together ... to flesh out the different perspectives, the expert advice and, of course, focus on this government's miserable failure when it comes to energy policy," she told Sky News. Asked about the political impact of dumping the climate target, Ms Ley said she would not foreshadow the review's outcome. Many Liberal moderates want the net-zero target retained so the party is seen to be taking climate action seriously. But Mr Joyce said there was no reason why abandoning the targets should be off the table. "This is not about leadership. This is not about trying to create some sort of discordant note," he told reporters ahead of the bill's introduction. "There's not anything in this bill that the coalition didn't have the same position we voted for." Mr Joyce has the backing of his former leadership rival Michael McCormack. The two ex-deputy prime ministers are critical of Nationals leader David Littleproud's handling of the aftermath of the election defeat. The coalition reunited at the end of May following a messy week-long split driven by divisions which included energy policy. Climate Change Authority chair Matt Kean, a former deputy leader of the NSW Liberal Party, said "political stunts are no substitutes for real policies". "The voters overwhelmingly gave their verdict on Labor's climate policies, compared with the coalition's, and if Labor's massive majority doesn't send out mandate signals, well you're probably not paying attention," he said. Mr Littleproud's leadership was contested after the election over the party's adoption of the climate target. Liberal MP Garth Hamilton has also backed Nationals MPs trying to jettison the climate target. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson launched her own bid to scrap net zero in the upper house on Monday. But the coalition largely stood united against the issue, with only Nationals senator Matt Canavan and firebrand Liberal Alex Antic voting with the minor party on the motion. Senator Canavan had said One Nation was "catching up" to his colleagues in the Nationals party, specifically Mr Joyce. "I give him credit for doing this: he's put it on the agenda, he's dominating the media discussions," he told the Senate. "We are here to make laws, not just statements, so we've got to repeal this rubbish." Only five out of the coalition's 27 senators showed up for the motion, but one was in the chair and exercised his right not to vote, while Liberal senators Jane Hume and Andrew McLachlan voted against it. A key climate target might be dumped by the coalition as an increasing number of Liberals cast doubt over the future of the opposition's commitment to net zero. Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce on Monday launched a bid to repeal the net-zero emissions by 2050 reduction target. But his private member's bill is guaranteed to fail, because it lacks the support of the government which has a majority in the House of Representatives. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley maintains the coalition will wait until after a review of its disastrous May election loss before making formal policy decisions. Despite a growing number of Liberal politicians speaking out against stronger climate change action, she doubled down on waiting for the review. "We're going to bring all of those views together ... to flesh out the different perspectives, the expert advice and, of course, focus on this government's miserable failure when it comes to energy policy," she told Sky News. Asked about the political impact of dumping the climate target, Ms Ley said she would not foreshadow the review's outcome. Many Liberal moderates want the net-zero target retained so the party is seen to be taking climate action seriously. But Mr Joyce said there was no reason why abandoning the targets should be off the table. "This is not about leadership. This is not about trying to create some sort of discordant note," he told reporters ahead of the bill's introduction. "There's not anything in this bill that the coalition didn't have the same position we voted for." Mr Joyce has the backing of his former leadership rival Michael McCormack. The two ex-deputy prime ministers are critical of Nationals leader David Littleproud's handling of the aftermath of the election defeat. The coalition reunited at the end of May following a messy week-long split driven by divisions which included energy policy. Climate Change Authority chair Matt Kean, a former deputy leader of the NSW Liberal Party, said "political stunts are no substitutes for real policies". "The voters overwhelmingly gave their verdict on Labor's climate policies, compared with the coalition's, and if Labor's massive majority doesn't send out mandate signals, well you're probably not paying attention," he said. Mr Littleproud's leadership was contested after the election over the party's adoption of the climate target. Liberal MP Garth Hamilton has also backed Nationals MPs trying to jettison the climate target. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson launched her own bid to scrap net zero in the upper house on Monday. But the coalition largely stood united against the issue, with only Nationals senator Matt Canavan and firebrand Liberal Alex Antic voting with the minor party on the motion. Senator Canavan had said One Nation was "catching up" to his colleagues in the Nationals party, specifically Mr Joyce. "I give him credit for doing this: he's put it on the agenda, he's dominating the media discussions," he told the Senate. "We are here to make laws, not just statements, so we've got to repeal this rubbish." Only five out of the coalition's 27 senators showed up for the motion, but one was in the chair and exercised his right not to vote, while Liberal senators Jane Hume and Andrew McLachlan voted against it.
Sydney Morning Herald
2 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Hanson tests Coalition resolve on net zero
'We are the Reform of [Australia] because everything that Nigel Farage stands for, I've been talking about for years, for nearly 30 years.' Hanson's anti-immigration party, which has courted controversy for decades for its stances on minority groups, added two senators at the May election, doubling its number of seats. Joyce's campaign has gained support from backbenchers Garth Hamilton, Tony Pasin, Alex Antic, a slew of Nationals, and the expanded right-wing Senate bloc of One Nation and United Australia Party's Ralph Babet. Frontbencher Andrew Hastie has also been fighting internally to overturn the net zero pledge, with the policy currently under review within the Coalition. Liberals have also spoken out about Indigenous welcome ceremonies after Ley indicated support for the practice. And in another sign of internal angst, former frontbencher Sarah Henderson argued in last week's private party room meeting that the Coalition should adopt as formal policy a push by Antic to enshrine in law the existence of only two genders. Henderson declined to comment. Taken together, the thrusts underline the depth of feeling among right-wing Coalition MPs as Ley aims to correct course from the perceived failings of the Dutton era. Institute of Public Affairs deputy head Daniel Wild said in Australia, as in the UK, there was a growing gap between the wishes of right-wing voters and the offerings of centre-right parties on cultural issues, immigration and green energy. 'What you're now seeing is a new bloc, whether it's people from One Nation or Barnaby Joyce, and others, giving voice to those concerns in a way that they haven't before,' Wild said. 'I don't think Liberals are going to die out, but I think the risk of irrelevancy is increasing.' Hume, one of only two Liberals to vote against Hanson's motion, pushed back against the One Nation leader, saying voters 'made it clear at the ballot box that they expect serious, credible action on climate change'. 'How can we keep the seats we have and win back the seats we've lost, without hearing that message?' she said. The UN's chief climate diplomat has urged Australia to continue its push towards net zero, warning that failure to stabilise the climate would cut living standards $7000 per person per year by 2050. 'Climate disasters are already costing Australian home owners $4 billion a year – and that figure is only going one way,' said Simon Stiell, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Outspoken conservative backbencher Hamilton warned of the risks of a Labor-lite agenda. 'We need to be wary of what's happened to our sister party in the UK,' he said, cautioning that Australia's preferential and compulsory system provided some protection from a third-party takeover. Loading Hamilton said public debate on the Coalition's direction should not be silenced, arguing Dutton did not lose because Australians rejected conservative values, but rather because of the Coalition's deficient policy agenda. Hanson said she was open to picking off Coalition MPs who felt uncomfortable with Ley's more centrist approach that has seen her spruik the case for quotas for preselecting women, dump the idea of building nuclear plants, and install Paul Scarr – who on Monday highlighted the positives of migration – into the immigration portfolio. The Nationals and Liberal Party briefly split after the election. During that period, Liberal MPs discussed privately the prospect of creating a new city-based party to espouse small-l liberal values unencumbered by conservative regional MPs. Scott Morrison canvassed the idea among his close colleagues after the 2022 election, according to several sources involved in those talks who did not want to be identified. Political historian Paul Strangio, an emeritus professor at Monash University, said Ley's message of modernising the party risked her being received 'as a kind of apostate'. 'Diagnosing what needs to be done doesn't mean Ley can magic away a quarter of a century of a conservative populist creep by the Liberals dating back to the Howard era that in essence has involved the party fighting a rearguard action against the evolving direction of Australian society,' he said. 'The resistance she will inevitably encounter is already evident in the incipient revolt within the Coalition against a net zero carbon emissions target. 'A major question looms over whether Ley has the requisite network of allies, intellectual and rhetorical force, strategic nous and fortitude to perform the diabolically difficult task of reversing 25 years of rightwards Liberal drift.'
