Jane Hume (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and Financial Technology) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

'This is a time of crisis, unprecedented in the history of the nation and under conditions never before paralleled in this country.' Now, I would like to take credit for those words and that sentence but, sadly, I cannot.

I know you could be forgiven for thinking that I was potentially the author, about to deliver a speech to the chamber about the health and economic implications of the coronavirus epidemic. But in fact those were the words first recorded in Hansard as spoken by a female voice in this chamber. It was a very different moment in time, six long decades ago, during the Second World War, when Dame Dorothy Tangney was the first woman elected to the Australian Senate and she rose to give her maiden speech. Her words, though, are eerily relevant today and particularly this week in this very strange, socially distanced sitting of the parliament. They are also more profound knowing that, tomorrow, when the Senate sits, we will in fact mark the anniversary of Australian women first earning the right to vote and to stand for federal elections.

In June 1902, the Commonwealth Franchise Act was passed. That was the law that granted most Australian women the right to vote and therefore also to stand in Commonwealth elections. In April 1902, it was Senator the Hon. Richard Edward O'Connor, who was at that stage the vice-president of the Executive Council, who introduced the Commonwealth Franchise Bill into the Senate with the intention of creating a uniform franchise for the Commonwealth. The original bill actually sought to extend the franchise not only to all women over 21 years of age but also to Indigenous Australians. The government at the time estimated that around 725,000 new voters would be added to the electoral roll as a result of this reform. That, in today's terms, is around the population of Tasmania and the Northern Territory combined. As you would imagine, the bill at that time provoked considerable debate both in the new Commonwealth parliament and also in the media and around the dinner table. It was reported in the newspapers of the day. There were plenty of opponents to women's suffrage who made various claims, including that women didn't actually want the vote and that they already exercised considerable influence through their domestic roles.

The bill was, however, successful, although not in its original form. The act stated 'all persons not under 21 years of age, whether male or female, married or unmarried' would be entitled to vote in Commonwealth elections but, in the end, it excluded Indigenous men and women unless they were eligible to vote under state laws, in accordance with section 41 of the Australian Constitution. It would actually take another six decades until Indigenous women and men were fully included in the franchise.

So across Australia women voted for the first time in the second-ever Commonwealth elections, held on 16 December 1903. Four women actually stood as candidates at that election that year. They were in fact the first women to nominate for any national parliament within what was then the British Empire. None were elected. Indeed, another 22 women followed between 1903 and the Second World War, and they too were unsuccessful. Over 40 years passed between the royal assent of the Commonwealth Franchise Act and when Dame Dorothy Tangney and Dame Enid Lyons took their seats in the Senate and the House of Representatives respectively, and 235 women have had the honour of representing their state or electorate in this place since then.

Despite the hurdles, despite the stumbles and despite its opponents and its inadequacies, particularly when seen through a contemporary lens, the passage of the Commonwealth Franchise Act was an important moment in Australia's history which needs to be noted. This is a time for us to pause and reflect. From my own perspective, although the act passed 118 years ago, I was astounded to find that I was in fact only the 14th woman to represent Victoria when I was elected to the Senate in 2016. As with so many of my predecessors, it took four rather bruising attempts at preselection over many years before I was given that honour. I don't resent this. In fact I wear it as a badge of pride, for it is indeed a rare honour to serve. My only regret is that I didn't put my hand up sooner. I should have backed myself earlier.

Today there are more women serving in parliament than ever before. There are more women in cabinet than ever before. I am very proud to see so many very talented women at the helm of portfolios that play a critical role at this time, particularly throughout COVID-19—ministers like Marise Payne, Linda Reynolds, Ann Ruston, Karen Andrews and Michaelia Cash, just to name a few. These are women at the frontline of Australia's successful response, and they are supported by so many. There are also many women across the aisle on the other side of the chamber, those opposite and those on the crossbench, who I may not always agree with—in fact, I may disagree more often than not—but whom I genuinely admire for their tenacity, strength, intellect and patriotism. They are indeed all patriots.

The diversity of backgrounds of the women who have entered here is striking. From my own side of politics, we've had lawyers, accountants, small-business owners, academics, doctors, farmers, real estate agents, nurses, tourism operators, housewives, public servants and company directors. Over six decades we've seen married women with large families and single women with none, and every permutation and combination in between. They've come from the city. They've come from the country, from privilege and from poverty, from political families or, like me, those who were the first in their families to enter the political life. Backgrounds are important because they provide a unique perspective, and that is where the wisdom of crowds comes from.

So, what then for the next generation? Because there is still work to be done, and I encourage women at any age and at any stage and from any background and any walk of life to consider public life. It's crazy and it's demanding, and it tests your intellect and ability. It can be very challenging, but I think every woman in this place would agree that to be part of and to contribute to something, to meaningful change, is by far the most fulfilling thing that anyone can do. I think my colleagues would also attest that, even as a rookie backbencher, you can have a very powerful voice in the party room.

I promised in my maiden speech that I would not pull the ladder up behind me and that I would reach down my hand to those who come after. It's the best way, I think, to honour not only those trailblazers who have come before but also the women who have also tried and not made it for whatever reason that may be. You often hear that women are our 'own worst enemy'. I beg to differ. In fact, I think that's a truly banal platitude largely used to foment division and suspicion amongst female colleagues. My experience could not be further from the truth.

We need more women to put their hands up and to take the plunge. As women like Dorothy Tangney and Enid Lyons proved, good government, good policy and good politics depend on this. So tomorrow I will move a motion to acknowledge the anniversary of the Commonwealth Franchise Act and it will be co-signed by all my female colleagues in the coalition. I will ask any senator here, whether they be male or female, if they would like to also co-sign it, but I would particularly like my female colleagues from the opposition and the crossbench to join me in this.

Honourable Senator:

An honourable senator interjecting—

Jane Hume (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and Financial Technology) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm very pleased to hear it, thank you.

It is commonly assumed that you become an adult on your 18th birthday. Now I'm a mother of an 18-year-old boy so I think I could potentially question that assertion. However, what is the milestone that we reach when we hit 118, for indeed that is the age of the Commonwealth Franchise Act? As all parliamentarians, regardless of gender, enter their respective chambers tomorrow, I hope that they will acknowledge this particular anniversary, this particular milestone. Earlier nearly than every other country in the world did we reach 118 years where women could not only vote but enter parliament. I hope that, as they enter the chamber, whether they be male or female, they are genuinely proud of the achievements of women from all sides of politics, all sides of the chamber, all parts of our history, all parts of today and all parts of the future for they have been so important in shaping our nation in the past, today and in the years ahead.