Zaneta Mascarenhas (Swan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Step over the glass, sisters, because the ceiling has been broken. The Albanese Labor government is the first Australian majority women government ever—full stop, period. Was this an accident? Hell, no; this was deliberate by design. Thirty years ago the Australian Labor Party took a bold stance and backed affirmative action. The goal was to set a target for women to be preselected for held and winnable seats. We met our 2002 target of 35 per cent and our 2012 target of 40 per cent. And then we finally smashed the 50 per cent target in 2022.

The Liberals got smashed by women in the west, with the member for Hasluck a woman, the member for Pearce a woman, my crossbench colleague the member for Curtin a woman and me, the member for Swan, a woman—the first in 101 years. And what has the WA Liberal Party preselected in the west? In Hasluck, it's a bloke. In Pearce, it's a bloke. In Curtin, it's another bloke. In Swan, it's yet another bloke. But there are other seats with new candidates, like Bullwinkle, Tangney and even Moore. They're all blokes. Frankly, I'm astounded. Women want more, and I'm not just talking about the seat.