Tim Wilson (Goldstein, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's an enormous privilege to be able to speak on this motion honouring the memory of Dame Margaret Guilfoyle. Like many members in this chamber, I knew Dame Margaret—though not well. In my many years as, shall we say, a possibly even more precocious youngish Liberal, I engaged with her regularly around the Kew area, where I was then working as an electoral officer—a very long time ago—and she would periodically come to events. As people will often remark, she was member of the Camberwell South branch, which she joined with her husband Stan Guilfoyle. So I saw her there with Stan and of course at various events, including the Liberal Party State Council.

She always stood as a firm, principled and committed warrior for the Liberal cause. I say that because that, to me, is how I see her. A lot of people remark on the fact that she was the first woman to sit in cabinet with a portfolio and that she was the first woman to hold an economic portfolio. These are matters that are true, but that doesn't change the fact that I have always seen her as a stoic, values-driven politician who lived the meaning of the Menzian ideal of liberalism around a forward-looking, modern liberalism reflective of the times and driving the progress of our great country.

Shortly after her death, I read a copy of her biography, written by my good friend and former upper house member in the Victorian parliament, Margaret Fitzherbert, who wrote about Margaret Guilfoyle:

Margaret Guilfoyle would have been an unusual candidate for any political party when she stood for election to the Senate in 1970. Decades before such arrangements became commonplace, flexible working hours allowed Guilfoyle to combine her career as an accountant with raising her three children. Her qualifications and experience later boosted Guilfoyle’s chances of obtaining a seat in Parliament, and gave her skills that equipped her to enter the Fraser ministry and eventually Cabinet, while her status as a working mother proved an irresistible angle for journalists throughout her political career

People might be distracted by those facts, but the reality is that it was her liberalism that motivated her ideals. In fact, I understand that shortly after her death a journalist contacted Stan and asked, 'How, in a couple of points, would you define Dame Margaret's political ideals?' And it was 'a commitment to free enterprise'. Of course, many of us in this chamber are motivated by high ideals as the basis of political service, but what she always had was a connection back to the practical reality of politics and the implementation of ideas.

I was reviewing her first speech in the lead-up to today, where it's quite clear how much she was anchored in the practical realities of realising the ambitions of this country. Her first speech included a reference to the considerable uncertainty about farm product in the forthcoming year and, of course, a very studious assessment of the Commonwealth budget, including the quote:

The total Commonwealth receipts are estimated to be of the order of $8,822m, an increase of 9.9 per cent.

And then going into various different sums assessing the accounts of the nation. So, of course, you can very clearly see the accountant in her.

It was that anchoring in those liberal ideals that she continued to pursue in her life, including in particular her commitment to environmental stewardship. From her first speech:

When speaking of environmental measures we must speak of individual responsibilities. If we are talking about environmental measures we must accept that just as the first syllable of management is man, so is it man's individual responsibility to ensure that a personal unselfishness and, perhaps, selflessness is brought to bear in the interests of the preservation of our natural resources.

She understood that liberalism was about our commitment to not just economic and social progress—though that is critical—but also environmental stewardship. You can see this particular commitment to environmental stewardship throughout her entire political career.

But I don't think we want to underplay her commitment to social progress either. She spoke extensively about the importance of social mobility as part of her commitment of realising liberalism. People have made reflections about her fights against various different budget measures and cuts, where she saw the importance of welfare being to mobilise people to be able to live out the fullness of their life, to be able to stand on their own two feet and to be part of the contribution to be successful.

In her valedictory speech, she reflected on the fact that her career was often defined by her gender. But it isn't just, of course, based on the world that you inherit; it is also based on the world that you leave behind. In her valedictory speech she acknowledged:

I am conscious of the fact that when I came here I was one of two women in the Parliament, but now there are many more women in this place and the other House. To me that has the significance that it will be more acceptable in the future to understand that ultimate responsibility is able to be handled by women. It was said that I was the first to hold a Cabinet post and administer a department-that might be true-but it had to be very important that I was not the last. I have watched with great interest the way in which Senator Ryan—

talking about the former late senator Susan Ryan, who I served with at the Human Rights Commission—

has handled her difficult and interesting portfolio, and I will be even more interested in watching the women who follow in the future to see that their contribution is recognised and is not in any way segregated from the overall contribution that must be made by people handling extensive portfolio work.

So it wasn't just about the contribution she made while she was is in this place, but the opportunities—whether it was through the promotion of environmental stewardship, social mobility or economic prosperity as the foundation for her liberalism—and what she left behind for future generations that will be her lasting legacy. May she rest in peace.

Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm honoured to be able to say a few words in this condolence motion for the late Dame Margaret Guilfoyle. Her contribution to Australia, to Victoria and, indeed, to the Liberal Party has been well documented in the remarks made by the Treasurer and others since then. An immigrant whose father died when she was just 10, her achievements were the product of her determination to gain an education, her hard work and her persistence. Elected to the Senate in 1971, she served there until 1987, holding a number of important portfolios, including Social Security and Finance. She later served on a series of boards and inquiries.

What comes through in many of the many comments that have been made in the last few days about Dame Margaret Guilfoyle was her capability as an administrator. Sometimes I suspect in this age of digital communication, television and the like, the ability of a minister is reflected in their performance on television. But, ultimately, first and foremost, a minister must be a capable administrator. They are sworn in to administer a department or departments of the state, and that was something which Margaret Guilfoyle was very good at. Her time as Minister for Social Security, I believe, reflected in part those childhood experiences, as a teenager and as a young woman, living in an immigrant family to this country and whose father had died when she was relatively at an early age.

I personally recall Margaret on many occasions giving me sage and kind advice at numerous Liberal Party functions that I attended when I was first elected to this place. She'd been gone for four or five years at that stage but, nonetheless, she maintained a very keen interest in the activities of the parliament, the direction of Australia and of course her beloved Liberal Party. That advice was always kindly offered. It was usually short but to the point, and I remember it fondly on many occasions. To Stan and members of the family, I offer my sincere condolences. May she rest in peace.

Zali Steggall (Warringah, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to acknowledge the passing of Dame Margaret Georgina Constance Guilfoyle AC DBE. Dame Margaret I didn't have the pleasure of meeting, but she's one of the many women from all sides of politics who have paved the way for a greater gender balance in parliament. I note my gratitude for her service and her legacy and, on behalf of the people of Warringah, I convey my condolences to her loved ones.

Typically, I would say we've failed to properly promote and highlight her trailblazing achievements until just now. It's important that we tell the story of women such as Dame Margaret and their many achievements. We need to do this more to set the example and encourage more women.

Dame Margaret's family migrated from Belfast when she was just two years old, settling into their new life in Melbourne, but tragically this new beginning was shattered when her father died when she was just 10 years old. Her widowed mother was left to raise Margaret and her two siblings with no immediate family to assist. The experience showed Margaret the importance of education and careers for women. She later said that she became aware early in life that at any time a woman must be capable of independence—wise words, indeed.

At the age of 15, Margaret was working as a secretary while continuing her studies in accountancy at night. By 1946, Margaret was a qualified accountant and chartered secretary. A year later she was head office accountant at Overseas Corporation Australia Limited, a firm that promoted Australian exports, and was clearly already a trailblazer.

In 1952 she married Stanley Martin Leslie Guilfoyle, and the couple had three children—two daughters and a son. Moving into private practice gave her more time with her family although she reportedly preferred working for a large company—an early example of dealing with a challenge that still confronts many women of being the primary caregiver for children and a qualified professional.

Dame Margaret ran for preselection for the position of Liberal Party senator for Victoria in 1970 in a field of 20 candidates. In an extraordinary and well-reported exchange during the preselection interviews, Mr John Jess, the Liberal member for La Trobe at the time, asked Guilfoyle who would look after her three children if she became a senator. Her response was:

I'm asking you to make a decision to give me responsibility to be a representative in the Senate and I would ask that you would accept that I have responsibility to make the decisions regarding my family.

Sadly, those questions still get asked quite frequently, I would suggest, of female members of parliament today.

Guilfoyle was successful in her preselection and was elected to the Senate with her term commencing in July 1971. In her first speech to parliament, Senator Guilfoyle referred to a range of topics, including those related to her financial and economic expertise but also the problem of pressures placed on the environment through pollution and population growth, and the need for increased funding for the arts.

Then began a 16-year term in parliament that, perhaps unwittingly, laid the foundations for generations of female parliamentarians to follow. As noted in The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate, Dame Margaret took committee roles that were in line with her own professional experience but perhaps at odds with the expected policy interests of a woman at that time. She was offered the opportunity of joining the Senate Standing Committee on Health and Welfare, but Guilfoyle believed that, because of her accounting background, she could do better as a member of the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Government Operations. She also joined the Public Accounts Committee and served on estimates committees. Over the course of those 16 years, Dame Margaret Guilfoyle achieved many noteworthy firsts. She was the first woman in cabinet with a ministerial portfolio, she was the first woman senator in cabinet and she was the first woman to hold a major economic portfolio. She was the Minister for Education in 1975, the Minister for Social Security between 1975 and 1980, the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister in Child Care Matters in 1975-76 and the Minister for Finance from 1980 to 1983.

After her time in parliament, Dame Margaret took on a number of board appointments in the health and welfare sector, including as deputy chair of the Mental Health Research Institute from 1988 to 2001 and the Infertility Treatment Authority from 1996 to 2002. She was president of the Royal Melbourne Hospital Board of Management from 1993 to 1995 and a member of the National Inquiry into the Human Rights of People with Mental Illness from 1990 to 1993. It was an incredibly busy and distinguished career, truly a life of service, and I thank her for it.

Her service highlights one thing—the increasing role of women in parliament. Dame Margaret would no doubt be very pleased to see the number of women in parliament today, but there is still much work to do. In this 46th Parliament, there are 45 women in the House of Representatives, just under 30 per cent. In the Senate, Dame Margaret's former workplace, the numbers are slightly better, amounting to nearly 50 per cent. The reality is that Australia is still only fifth worst in the OECD for inequality in political participation, above only Lithuania, Japan, Israel and Hungary. I was so dejected when I read that, but I was also dejected to read that a recent survey by Plan International of 2,000 young Australian women found that, among those aged 18 to 25 years old, zero per cent expressed an interest in politics as a career. Clearly we need to do a better job of highlighting the legacy and the stories of women like Dame Margaret and their contribution so that these young women can aspire to also make their mark. We must do better. We owe it to Dame Margaret to do better. In her own words:

Equal participation of women in the Parliament, in the whole of community life, can only lead us to a better understanding of humanity and to the fulfilment of the aspirations that we would have for a civilised society.

So we must do better to increase female participation and representation in the political process. I commend groups like Women for Election Australia, who aim to inspire and equip women to run for office and to sustain them once elected. The team there have identified that the reasons for women's underrepresentation in politics fall under the 'five Cs', and some of these resonate with Dame Margaret's own journey in politics. The first is confidence. Women are less likely to step forward for selection. No. 2 is cash. Women have less access than men to resources. Then there is culture. A gendered culture is often prevalent within major political parties. Then we have child care. Women are more likely to have this responsibility. Finally is candidate selection procedures. The processes by which political parties select candidates pose a significant obstacle to women's political participation, as Dame Margaret's own story would show.

I commend the work of Women for Election and I wish them all the best in their endeavours to inspire and equip 2,000 women to run for political office by 2022. To do so would ensure that the legacy of Dame Margaret and the many others like her is not only respected but is endorsed, built upon and celebrated. It's the least we can do to honour this trailblazer who quietly and humbly dismantled so many barriers and opened up doors to those of us who followed.

Katie Allen (Higgins, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise in this chamber to pay tribute to a stalwart of the Australian parliament. Dame Margaret Guilfoyle AC DBE passed away in Melbourne last month, leaving behind a great legacy and impact on our political landscape and, indeed, the country at large. She will forever hold a unique and important place in our collective history. As a member of prime minister Malcolm Fraser's cabinet from 1975 to 1984, Ms Guilfoyle was the first woman to run an Australian government department, the first woman in cabinet with ministerial portfolio and the first woman to hold a major economic portfolio, making her the highest-ranking woman in the Australian government until 2010. That is quite an achievement. Known for her hardworking and considered nature, she built a strong record of achievement, with her performance as a minister praised on all sides of politics. She knew that women had a vital role to play in politics and in the leadership of our country. She was principled and determined, with her legacy profoundly changing the operation of Australian society.

Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 1926, Dame Margaret migrated with her family to my home city of Melbourne in 1928. As a child of the Great Depression, following the death of her father when she was just 10 years old she understood the importance of education and economic security for women, stating that 'At any time a woman must be capable of independence.' It's almost hard to imagine, actually, for a young woman to be given that sense of how she needs to have independence.

She was certainly someone who led by example. She undertook secretarial and accounting studies while maintaining a full-time job. In 1971, as a qualified accountant and mother of three, Dame Margaret entered parliament as a senator for Victoria—one of only two women. Immediately she made a considered point of joining and later leading committees that were focused on economics and finance rather than family issues alone. Yet when parliament discussed issues that impacted women and families, Dame Margaret was a vocal and fervent advocate for all women. She understood that equal participation in leadership is necessary in order to ensure the fulfilment of aspirations for a civilised society. In this life she argued passionately for the provision of maternity leave for all women, not just Commonwealth employees. She ensured the delivery of social services for women, frequently reminding her colleagues that at the time 83 per cent of social security payments were made to women. Indeed, as head of the Office of Child Care she presided over a historic and major expansion of government support for preschool, child care and afterschool care, a measure that parents like myself continue to benefit from and appreciate today.

It is indubitable that Dame Margaret paved the way for other women in politics, myself included. Certainly she was an immense figure in the Liberal Party and an inspiration for so many of us. With mentors such as Elizabeth Couchman, Ivy Wedgwood and Edith Haynes, she was encouraged and supported to become the embodiment of a Liberal woman. In her first speech Dame Margaret applauded the party's equal representation on all party committees in the Victorian Liberal Party during her time, paying tribute to the work of the Australian Women's National League as well as her mentors, who insisted on the equality of voting power within the party. She once famously answered a preselector's question about her children, by saying, 'I'm asking you to make a decision to give me responsibility to be a representative in the Senate. And I would ask that you would accept that I have responsibility to make the decisions regarding my family.' As my daughters would say, she had some sass. Indeed, following her departure from the Senate, Dame Margaret remained an ambassador and trailblazer for women's leadership, becoming the chair of the Liberal Women's Forum in 1993, seeking to encourage more women into the Liberal Party. As an aside, I will be speaking to the Liberal Women's Forum this evening, and we will be speaking about Dame Margaret and the legacy she has left us.

For decades women in our country did not have the same magnitude or number of role models to look to as men had. Indeed, this is true in the history of mankind—in fact we should say the history of 'humankind'. It is only in recent history that we have witnessed the ascension of women to positions of power and impact, with great leaders, including Dame Margaret, leading the way. However, as for men, it's crucial that women and girls are able to look across our country's leadership and see themselves represented at every point of significance. I know firsthand that role models are crucial in helping to broaden our horizons, open doors and pave the way for an equal society. My late and great cousin Margaret Bondfield was the first female member of cabinet in the UK parliament, almost 100 years ago. In those days, women, like our party's co-founder, Dame Elizabeth Couchman, had to choose between a public life and having a family. Certainly, my forebear Margaret Bondfield did not marry and did not have a family; she devoted herself to public service and she devoted herself to politics. Indeed, Dame Margaret's legacy as a cabinet minister, qualified accountant and mother of three has further opened doors. As the Prime Minister said, they will never be shut again. The legacy of these women is left for all of us here, in this place, to champion.

When I read Dame Margaret's first speech to the Senate in 1971, numerous key themes resonated, many of which I spoke about in my own first speech last year. Dame Margaret identified her concerns about the economy and the provision of economic security for women. I'd like to pay tribute to my predecessor as the member for Higgins, the Hon. Kelly O'Dwyer, for the work she did in developing the first Women's economic security statement in 2018, which has been refreshed and updated in the most recent 2020 budget, with the second Women's economic security statement and increased funding given to that. She also discussed the pressures placed on the environment and the importance of supporting the arts—two things that are very dear to my heart. The similarities between two such speeches signifies that there is always more to be done in this place to support women, our environment and the economy as we work towards the fulfilment of a civilised and thriving society that people like Dame Margaret have continued to envision.

As I said before, one of the centrepieces of this year's budget was the updated Women's economic security statement. This builds on the important work of the former member for Higgins, Kelly O'Dwyer. The statement sought to invest in three key pillars: workforce participation, earning potential and economic independence. This year's updated statement will see our government invest $240 million in measures and programs to support things that I think Dame Margaret would have approved of. This includes women's safety at work and at home; new cadetships and apprenticeships for the women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics; and job creation and entrepreneurialism. The statement was of particular importance this year following the vast impact of the economic fallout from COVID on women in our communities. As Dame Margaret understood, provision of support to bolster the efforts of women is crucial in order to achieve equal participation of women in parliament and in the whole of community life. In 1944, Sir Robert Menzies, founder of the Liberal Party, foreshadowed that women were unquestionably destined to exercise more and more influence on practical politics in Australia. Perhaps Menzies was predicting at that time the astounding legacy and leadership of Dame Margaret, which would change the landscape for ever more, only a few decades later.

Now, in 2020, the Liberal Party remains committed to an Australia where women are full and active participants in all spheres of public and private life. At the end of the Howard government, around one-third of government board positions were occupied by women. In 2016, we set a target of women occupying 50 per cent of Australian government board positions. I'm proud to be part of a government that is ensuring that this target is on track to be met, with 46 per cent of positions, which is the highest proportion ever held by women. Furthermore, there are currently seven women in cabinet, which maintains the record of women in cabinet for an Australian government. At the same time, we now have equal gender representation in the Senate, with 38 women and 38 men for the first time ever. The achievements of the Liberal Party to date are testament to our commitment to recognising, protecting and enhancing the position and opportunities for Australian women. This commitment remains inspired by the leadership of the greats who came before us, including Dame Margaret Guilfoyle. Certainly, Dame Margaret leaves behind an astounding legacy that has profoundly changed how Australian society operates. The Australian parliament, the Liberal Party and, indeed, the entire nation are better for her service. Vale, Dame Margaret Guilfoyle.

Rick Wilson (O'Connor, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I understand it is the wish of honourable members to signify at this stage their respect and sympathy by rising in their places.

Honourable members having stood in their places—

I thank the Federation Chamber.

George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That further proceedings be conducted in the House.

Question agreed to.