Latest news with #Mortlock
The Advertiser
05-06-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
So assertive: Liberal women rebuke party elder for jibe
The Liberal Party has been warned not to allow "out-of-touch" men to dictate its future as its treatment of women returns to the spotlight. Former federal Liberal president Alan Stockdale set off a political powder keg when he told a gathering of female executives Liberal women had become "so assertive" the party might need to consider support for men. As the Liberals reckon with an election drubbing partially driven by a drop in women's support, female members of the coalition have united to lash Mr Stockdale. Hilma's Network co-founder Charlotte Mortlock, whose organisation supports women in the Liberal Party, is calling for action. "Out-of-touch men continue to tarnish the party's reputation ... we can't keep allowing a disconnected membership to determine the future of the party," she told AAP on Thursday. "No one is voting for female politicians to go into parliament and not be assertive. "They don't want wallflowers in Canberra, they want intelligent, assertive women who are going to make a contribution to our democracy to improve our country." Mr Stockdale, who was treasurer under ex-Victorian premier Jeff Kennett, made the comments at the NSW Liberal Women's Council meeting on Tuesday night, according to a source. The group were discussing the need for gender quotas when the 80-year-old said words to the effect the women in the party were so assertive special rules may be needed for men to get them preselected. He later told the Daily Telegraph he had made "a lighthearted but poorly chosen remark". Sussan Ley, the first female leader of the federal coalition, and her deputy Ted O'Brien hit back at the comments. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman, in fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party," Ms Ley said in a statement. "The Liberal Party must reflect, respect and represent modern Australia and that means recognising the strength, merit and leadership of the women in our ranks." The party has tried to quietly address its "women's issue" but Ms Mortlock said it has not worked. Gender quotas for women were "long overdue" and she urged the party to overhaul its constitution and pre-selection process. "We need to do the reform internally and to be vocal and outspoken when things like this happen so we can prove to women that we aren't going into parliament to be apologists for men's bad behaviour," Ms Mortlock said. The Liberals have long been accused of placing female candidates in unwinnable positions and their policies have recently failed to convince female voters. This was laid bare in May when the party was dealt its worst-ever federal election loss, after a campaign that including the announcement of a policy requiring public servants to stop working from home. That was blamed for alienating women voters, many of whom use the arrangement to balance their jobs with child care and other duties. Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie told Mr Stockdale to "read the room" and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the party had lost its way. The NSW division of the Liberals, in particular, has been in turmoil after it failed to nominate more than 140 candidates for the statewide local government elections in September. The federal Liberals took over and appointed three figures, including Mr Stockdale and another Victorian, to oversee the party's state affairs. Mr Albanese claimed this triumvirate had been put in charge as a result of former Liberal prime minister Tony Abbott and the desire of the party's hard right faction to banish the historically moderate leadership. During question time in NSW parliament, Labor Premier Chris Minns noted the shadow ministry, composed of 10 women and 16 men, was "like a men's shed". "They're going to have to install urinals," he said. The Liberal Party has been warned not to allow "out-of-touch" men to dictate its future as its treatment of women returns to the spotlight. Former federal Liberal president Alan Stockdale set off a political powder keg when he told a gathering of female executives Liberal women had become "so assertive" the party might need to consider support for men. As the Liberals reckon with an election drubbing partially driven by a drop in women's support, female members of the coalition have united to lash Mr Stockdale. Hilma's Network co-founder Charlotte Mortlock, whose organisation supports women in the Liberal Party, is calling for action. "Out-of-touch men continue to tarnish the party's reputation ... we can't keep allowing a disconnected membership to determine the future of the party," she told AAP on Thursday. "No one is voting for female politicians to go into parliament and not be assertive. "They don't want wallflowers in Canberra, they want intelligent, assertive women who are going to make a contribution to our democracy to improve our country." Mr Stockdale, who was treasurer under ex-Victorian premier Jeff Kennett, made the comments at the NSW Liberal Women's Council meeting on Tuesday night, according to a source. The group were discussing the need for gender quotas when the 80-year-old said words to the effect the women in the party were so assertive special rules may be needed for men to get them preselected. He later told the Daily Telegraph he had made "a lighthearted but poorly chosen remark". Sussan Ley, the first female leader of the federal coalition, and her deputy Ted O'Brien hit back at the comments. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman, in fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party," Ms Ley said in a statement. "The Liberal Party must reflect, respect and represent modern Australia and that means recognising the strength, merit and leadership of the women in our ranks." The party has tried to quietly address its "women's issue" but Ms Mortlock said it has not worked. Gender quotas for women were "long overdue" and she urged the party to overhaul its constitution and pre-selection process. "We need to do the reform internally and to be vocal and outspoken when things like this happen so we can prove to women that we aren't going into parliament to be apologists for men's bad behaviour," Ms Mortlock said. The Liberals have long been accused of placing female candidates in unwinnable positions and their policies have recently failed to convince female voters. This was laid bare in May when the party was dealt its worst-ever federal election loss, after a campaign that including the announcement of a policy requiring public servants to stop working from home. That was blamed for alienating women voters, many of whom use the arrangement to balance their jobs with child care and other duties. Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie told Mr Stockdale to "read the room" and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the party had lost its way. The NSW division of the Liberals, in particular, has been in turmoil after it failed to nominate more than 140 candidates for the statewide local government elections in September. The federal Liberals took over and appointed three figures, including Mr Stockdale and another Victorian, to oversee the party's state affairs. Mr Albanese claimed this triumvirate had been put in charge as a result of former Liberal prime minister Tony Abbott and the desire of the party's hard right faction to banish the historically moderate leadership. During question time in NSW parliament, Labor Premier Chris Minns noted the shadow ministry, composed of 10 women and 16 men, was "like a men's shed". "They're going to have to install urinals," he said. The Liberal Party has been warned not to allow "out-of-touch" men to dictate its future as its treatment of women returns to the spotlight. Former federal Liberal president Alan Stockdale set off a political powder keg when he told a gathering of female executives Liberal women had become "so assertive" the party might need to consider support for men. As the Liberals reckon with an election drubbing partially driven by a drop in women's support, female members of the coalition have united to lash Mr Stockdale. Hilma's Network co-founder Charlotte Mortlock, whose organisation supports women in the Liberal Party, is calling for action. "Out-of-touch men continue to tarnish the party's reputation ... we can't keep allowing a disconnected membership to determine the future of the party," she told AAP on Thursday. "No one is voting for female politicians to go into parliament and not be assertive. "They don't want wallflowers in Canberra, they want intelligent, assertive women who are going to make a contribution to our democracy to improve our country." Mr Stockdale, who was treasurer under ex-Victorian premier Jeff Kennett, made the comments at the NSW Liberal Women's Council meeting on Tuesday night, according to a source. The group were discussing the need for gender quotas when the 80-year-old said words to the effect the women in the party were so assertive special rules may be needed for men to get them preselected. He later told the Daily Telegraph he had made "a lighthearted but poorly chosen remark". Sussan Ley, the first female leader of the federal coalition, and her deputy Ted O'Brien hit back at the comments. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman, in fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party," Ms Ley said in a statement. "The Liberal Party must reflect, respect and represent modern Australia and that means recognising the strength, merit and leadership of the women in our ranks." The party has tried to quietly address its "women's issue" but Ms Mortlock said it has not worked. Gender quotas for women were "long overdue" and she urged the party to overhaul its constitution and pre-selection process. "We need to do the reform internally and to be vocal and outspoken when things like this happen so we can prove to women that we aren't going into parliament to be apologists for men's bad behaviour," Ms Mortlock said. The Liberals have long been accused of placing female candidates in unwinnable positions and their policies have recently failed to convince female voters. This was laid bare in May when the party was dealt its worst-ever federal election loss, after a campaign that including the announcement of a policy requiring public servants to stop working from home. That was blamed for alienating women voters, many of whom use the arrangement to balance their jobs with child care and other duties. Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie told Mr Stockdale to "read the room" and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the party had lost its way. The NSW division of the Liberals, in particular, has been in turmoil after it failed to nominate more than 140 candidates for the statewide local government elections in September. The federal Liberals took over and appointed three figures, including Mr Stockdale and another Victorian, to oversee the party's state affairs. Mr Albanese claimed this triumvirate had been put in charge as a result of former Liberal prime minister Tony Abbott and the desire of the party's hard right faction to banish the historically moderate leadership. During question time in NSW parliament, Labor Premier Chris Minns noted the shadow ministry, composed of 10 women and 16 men, was "like a men's shed". "They're going to have to install urinals," he said. The Liberal Party has been warned not to allow "out-of-touch" men to dictate its future as its treatment of women returns to the spotlight. Former federal Liberal president Alan Stockdale set off a political powder keg when he told a gathering of female executives Liberal women had become "so assertive" the party might need to consider support for men. As the Liberals reckon with an election drubbing partially driven by a drop in women's support, female members of the coalition have united to lash Mr Stockdale. Hilma's Network co-founder Charlotte Mortlock, whose organisation supports women in the Liberal Party, is calling for action. "Out-of-touch men continue to tarnish the party's reputation ... we can't keep allowing a disconnected membership to determine the future of the party," she told AAP on Thursday. "No one is voting for female politicians to go into parliament and not be assertive. "They don't want wallflowers in Canberra, they want intelligent, assertive women who are going to make a contribution to our democracy to improve our country." Mr Stockdale, who was treasurer under ex-Victorian premier Jeff Kennett, made the comments at the NSW Liberal Women's Council meeting on Tuesday night, according to a source. The group were discussing the need for gender quotas when the 80-year-old said words to the effect the women in the party were so assertive special rules may be needed for men to get them preselected. He later told the Daily Telegraph he had made "a lighthearted but poorly chosen remark". Sussan Ley, the first female leader of the federal coalition, and her deputy Ted O'Brien hit back at the comments. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman, in fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party," Ms Ley said in a statement. "The Liberal Party must reflect, respect and represent modern Australia and that means recognising the strength, merit and leadership of the women in our ranks." The party has tried to quietly address its "women's issue" but Ms Mortlock said it has not worked. Gender quotas for women were "long overdue" and she urged the party to overhaul its constitution and pre-selection process. "We need to do the reform internally and to be vocal and outspoken when things like this happen so we can prove to women that we aren't going into parliament to be apologists for men's bad behaviour," Ms Mortlock said. The Liberals have long been accused of placing female candidates in unwinnable positions and their policies have recently failed to convince female voters. This was laid bare in May when the party was dealt its worst-ever federal election loss, after a campaign that including the announcement of a policy requiring public servants to stop working from home. That was blamed for alienating women voters, many of whom use the arrangement to balance their jobs with child care and other duties. Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie told Mr Stockdale to "read the room" and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the party had lost its way. The NSW division of the Liberals, in particular, has been in turmoil after it failed to nominate more than 140 candidates for the statewide local government elections in September. The federal Liberals took over and appointed three figures, including Mr Stockdale and another Victorian, to oversee the party's state affairs. Mr Albanese claimed this triumvirate had been put in charge as a result of former Liberal prime minister Tony Abbott and the desire of the party's hard right faction to banish the historically moderate leadership. During question time in NSW parliament, Labor Premier Chris Minns noted the shadow ministry, composed of 10 women and 16 men, was "like a men's shed". "They're going to have to install urinals," he said.
Sky News AU
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
‘Absolutely paramount': Liberal Party should be representative of Australian population
Hilma's Network Founder Charlotte Mortlock discusses the structure and nature of the Liberal Party following a strong defeat in the recent Australian federal election. 'The average Australian is a 37-year-old female; the average Liberal Party member is a male in his seventies,' Ms Mortlock told Sky News Australia. 'It is absolutely paramount that we have quotas, I don't even think it's negotiable at this point. 'It is not the time for soft ideas, it is the time for really hard concrete decisions to be made within this party, and unless we make them quickly, I really doubt that there'll be many liberal women that will stick around for another three years.'
News.com.au
06-05-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
‘They are morons': Millennial warns Liberal Party against ‘ocean of males'
The millennial who set up a grassroots movement to recruit young women into the Liberal Party has declared that if the party chooses two males for the leadership team 'they are morons.' Accusing the Liberal Party of forcing women to 'sell a sh*t sandwich', former Sky News anchor and new mum Charlotte Mortlock said change was vital if the party is going to survive. The Liberal Party looks set to be left with as little as five women in the 150-seat parliament, a group that could fit inside a six-seater Hyundai Santa Fe. But despite the dire situation, there's now chatter the Liberal Party is toying with the option of a male only leadership team. 'If these people think the way forward after that diabolical result is to have two men leading the party, they are morons,' Liberal Charlotte Mortolock said. 'If we knock back Sussan Ley, who has been a loyal deputy, then this is Julie Bishop 2.0 and it's history repeating itself.' She warned that women in the Liberal Party have 'had enough' of being painted as 'crumb maidens' forced to pretend to be happy without a seat at the table. There was speculation on Monday that the Liberal Party could preselect a double act of Angus Taylor and Dan Tehan for the toughest job in Australian politics. Rising star Zoe McKenzie has been mooted as a manager of opposition business if she hangs onto her seat in Victoria. As the bloodletting continues in the party over the Labor landslide, women are speaking out about the need to preselect more women into winnable seats to revitalise the party. Ms Mortlock previously spoke out after the executive director of the Menzies Research Centre Nick Cater wrote an opinion article in The Australian that was published under the headline 'Single young females the biggest threat to parties on the right'. 'Single women, particularly single mothers, have a vested interest in state intervention. A generation ago they could have expected a breadwinner to support them,'' he said. 'Today, that breadwinner is the government to all intents and purposes, an ever-reliable partner with deep pockets to top up their meagre income,' Cater added. Ms Mortlock responded that she didn't see young, single women as a threat, 'I see them as the solution.' 'This cohort of young, single Australian women is more educated and has a higher amount of disposable income than their grandmothers and mothers,'' she said. 'Young, single Australian women don't need husbands. They need, and deserve, legislation and political parties that talk to them, not about them.' There's also speculation that Liberal Senator Jane Hume, who is theoretically a moderate, has teamed up with right-winger Angus Taylor and could be angling for the Opposition Senate leadership replacing Michaelia Cash. In the last parliament, the Coalition had 11 women among 57 MPs in the House of Representatives. Ms Mortlock also backed gender quotas for candidates that 'aren't even negotiable'. 'They are a must,' she said. 'If they don't expect us to demand that, they must assume we have no self-respect and are still crumb maidens,'' she told The Australian Financial Review. Former Liberal Defence Minister Senator Linda Reynolds agreed that the Liberal Party was an 'ocean of males'. 'It's one of the issues I have been fighting for, for a very long time in the Liberal Party,' the senator said. 'Ten years ago I was part of a review into gender … and we recommended targets and how to get there without quotas. Meanwhile, Liberal frontbencher Hollie Hughes has launched an extraordinary attack on opposition treasury spokesman Angus Taylor saying she 'didn't know what he had been doing for three years.' The man most likely to become the next Liberal leader was not up to the job she has warned. 'I have concerns about his capability. I feel we have zero economic policy to sell,' Senator Hughes said on Radio National. 'I don't know what he's been doing for three years. There was no tax policy, there was no economic narrative.' Senator Hughes is set to leave parliament but will still have a vote for the next Liberal leader. She is aligned with the Centre Right faction backing Sussan Ley.
Otago Daily Times
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Former lawyer's Red Herring board game hooks players
Simon and Belinda Mortlock in the middle of a game of Red Herring. Photo: Geoff Sloan From business lawyer to board game inventor, Governors Bay man Simon Mortlock has made quite the post-retirement shift. The inception of his board game, Red Herring, came from seeing the card game, Exploding Kittens, last year. 'I thought now that's a stupid game. If someone can make money out of a card game like that, then surely I can make a board game as well,' Mortlock said. Red Herring is a strategy game played by four to six people. The object is to be the first to construct your own jetty in one hour. The Governors Bay Jetty. Photo: Geoof Sloan Mortlock designed the game in a fundraising effort for the Governors Bay Jetty Restoration Trust. He is the trust's current patron and its former chair. 'If you haven't got it, you've got to make it,' he said. Mortlock was a lawyer for 53 years and a founding partner at Mortlock McCormack Law before retiring in 2021. His lawyer's skills translate to the game, where strategy and managing risk are crucial to winning. Mortlock, who lives in Governors Bay, compared the game to Monopoly but said it is more complex. The board is a map of Lyttelton Harbour with 36 different locations around the bay labelled in English and Te Reo, designed by Governors Bay artist, Russ Harris. 'It's a staggering amount of detail and there's very fine craftsmanship,' said Mortlock. Each player is given a coloured jetty and 20 planks worth of differing points to start the game. Players gain more planks when they complete a circuit or land on certain locations. Players can take planks from other players and use them strategically to decide whether to build their jetty first or maximise their points. It took Mortlock six months to iron out the rules while Harris designed the board. 'We played it over and over and over again to perfect it. 'I'm really thrilled with the quality of the outcome,' Mortlock said. The Caxton printed version costs $90 while the limited edition handcrafted board costs $345. Forty-nine handmade copies and 33 Caxton printed versions have sold so far. They have raised $13,000 for the Governors Bay Jetty Restoration Trust. Mortlock is meeting with retailers this week to get Red Herring into stores. 'It would be great if it took off and helped raise a lot of money for charity,' he said.
Daily Telegraph
26-04-2025
- Business
- Daily Telegraph
Worst NIMBY suburbs: Sydney areas choking housing supply
Chronic opposition to new housing in prime western suburbs has strangled attempts to supply Sydney with the vital homes needed to meet surging population growth. Alarming new analysis has revealed multiple, large Harbour City enclaves where fewer than 20 new homes were built over the past two years, with local housing supply growing by less than a per cent. There were 78 suburb areas identified as having 'minimal to negligible' housing growth due to low dwelling approval rates, according to the SuburbTrends and MCG Quantity Surveyors data. The low approval rates were 'indicative of local opposition or restrictive zoning practices', the research revealed. It comes as NSW continues to fall behind housing targets, with the state well short of the 377,000 homes needed to be built to meet the National Housing Accord target of 1.2 million new homes by 2029. Sydney areas with the least new housing approvals tended to be established suburbs dominated by low density, single-level homes. Less than a third of the homes in these suburbs were units or townhouses when the last census was taken in 2021. These suburbs often had space to grow and much of the community opposition to the new homes has been on density grounds. Council areas where lower volumes of housing were being approved covered much of the north shore and the inner west, along with parts of the Hills District. But individual suburbs flagged as some of the worst perpetrators of NIMBYism (Not In My Back Yard) were in Sydney's outer west – where there is generally space for new housing developments. They included Glenmore Park in Sydney's outer west, along with Harrington Park, Londonderry and Bligh Park. Other pockets with particularly low housing approvals were Menai, Illawong and Alfords Point in the Sutherland Shire and Cromer, on the northern beaches. The research excluded suburbs with less than 1500 dwellings. Low development in these areas was 'placing significant pressure on existing housing stock and exacerbating local affordability issues', the SuburbTrends and MCG research revealed. MCG Quantity Surveyors director Mike Mortlock said low approvals in many areas painted a 'clear picture of entrenched resistance to new housing'. 'Places like Glenmore Park, Illawong and Cromer are emblematic of the challenge: low-density communities, often with strong local identities, where planning inertia and local opposition continue to choke supply,' Mr Mortlock said. Many of the areas with the lowest housing approvals could benefit from densification, he added. 'What's striking is that several of these areas, such as Springwood and Wentworth Falls, offer the very lifestyle benefits that would make them ideal candidates for moderate densification. Yet we see barely a trickle of approvals,' Mr Mortlock said. 'These are the suburbs where policy needs to evolve from rhetoric to implementation, because the mismatch between demand and local supply is only widening.' Regentville, Windsor and Yarramundi were also flagged as low development suburbs, although these suburbs had strict flood control or bush fire zones that limited where new housing could be built. Regional towns within SA4 areas such as Newcastle, Wollongong, and The Central Coast also reflect strong opposition or restrictive planning policies, according to the research. This has limited new housing growth in these areas despite them being critical to relieving housing pressures in metropolitan Sydney. Housing Industry Association economist Tim Reardon said a 'perfect failure' in the town planning system had allowed NIMBY tendencies to flourish in certain councils. 'Town planners get no reward for approving a development and face risks if they do approve a development,' he said. Mr Reardon added that councils were often overly concerned with how new developments would influence voter decisions at local elections, thinking approvals would turn ratepayers against them. 'The areas where there is stronger resistance to new development tend to be older suburbs. We need to strike a balance between preserving these areas and supplying new housing. 'The solution is to take development approvals out of the hands of local councils and let state governments handle it while councils focus purely on town planning.' Mr Reardon explained that a change in homeowner attitudes would also help. 'Opposition from rate payers to higher density developments is often with the view that it will devalue the existing homes and stretch amenities but new developments often deliver the opposite. 'Well-designed developments will often bring better amenities and services and make areas more desirable.' Real estate entrepreneur Peter Diamantidis built a house in Glenmore Park back in the early 2010s and said the current planning system was unrecognisable compared to when he built. 'Most of the area was built about 30 years ago and they staggered land releases over a few years but now it's really slow,' he said. 'There is a lot of land around there but it is not as easy to build. 'The problem with a lot of areas like this is that they are really poorly planned. A whole lot of promises were made about what kind of services would be built in the area but they often haven't done that. 'There are a few suburbs that are like Glenmore Park. They have to be better serviced before they can be developed further. Right now, the infrastructure is coming in last.'
