Julia Banks (Chisholm, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Indi for raising this important issue today. Like the member for Indi and the other members who have spoken on this issue, I believe that gender equality throughout Australia in leadership roles in government and business is crucial to the ongoing success of our nation. Gender equality is a complex and multidimensional issue. I do know that it is when men support men and women, and when women support men and women that the cause for gender equality comes equally from the hearts and minds of both, and we as a society can and will prosper. That is why the Turnbull government is fully committed to supporting and encouraging women into leadership positions. We've set an ambitious but achievable target of women holding 50 per cent of Australian government board positions.

I know from my experience in business that the business world, across industries, has always made the business case and understands that diversity delivers success. However, this happens only when real, substantive measurable mechanisms are implemented to increase representation of women in leadership positions—measurable and achievable targets for which leaders demonstrate their accountability. There is more work to do. It is imperative that business and government recognise that the meritocracy argument is flawed, and that the two things that get in the way are often discrimination and unconscious bias. Targets work in business as a way of incentivising people. However, quotas are a necessary element in politics, in my view.

I'm pleased to report today that, as of June last year, women had reached 42.7 per cent representation on government boards, and women comprise more than 52 per cent of appointments made in the April to June quarter of 2017. It is a promising trend in the growth of women's representation; however, more substantive measurable mechanisms need to be implemented. Likewise, the statistics on women's representation in the private sector have demonstrated a similarly positive trend, but not a trend that is sufficient to get the fifty-fifty action that we need. According to recent reports by the Australian Institute of Company Directors, women now make up a record high of 26.1 per cent of ASX 200 directorships and women accounted for more than 43 per cent of appointments to manager roles in 2016-17.

This positive progress across both the public and private sectors demonstrates the Turnbull government's dedication to tangible change for women in the workplace. Our workplaces and communities function best when they're truly representative of society. That is why it is integral that our government departments, businesses, politics and organisations reflect an equal number of men and women. From a productivity and intergenerational perspective, and given our ageing population, there must be increased participation of women in the workforce and in leadership. As such, the Turnbull government has made it a priority to reduce the workforce participation gap by 25 per cent by 2025 for Australian women. More women in the workforce means more women being made ready for leadership positions.

In my experience as a leader of organisations in the private sector for over 20 years, I noted that absence from the workplace due to child bearing, child care or caring for the elderly demanded an increasing need for flexible workplaces and policies specifically designed to help those who want to work or work more and those on the lowest incomes. Our most recent budget had a number of measures to boost women's workforce participation. We know that child care is the most commonly perceived barrier to participation for women in the labour market, so we allocated an additional $2.5 billion for a number of childcare initiatives. We're also investing $430 million to support universal access to preschool and $263 million for the rollout of ParentsNext.

The government's commitment to boosting women's participation in the workforce has seen encouraging results. Indeed, since the coalition was elected in 2013, around 570,000 jobs have been created for Australian women. The member for Indi will also be pleased to know that the government is supporting rural and regional women through the Women's Leadership and Development Strategy grants program and the National Women's Rural Coalition. The Turnbull government has also partnered with the National Association of Women in Operations, of which I had firsthand experience when I worked for many years in the manufacturing centre, to provide women's leadership programs. These integral initiatives, coupled with the Turnbull government's ongoing commitment to encouraging quality through aiming to reach our target of 50 per cent representation of women on appointed government boards, will work towards delivering tangible equality for men and women in the workforce and throughout Australia.

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