Sussan Ley (Farrer, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for North Sydney for moving this important motion on International Women's Day. On this day, across Australia, morning teas and events have been held, words have been spoken and pledges have been made. Women have been recognised, rightly, and achievements lauded. We have congratulated and commended, and progress will be and should be praised, yet that experience will not be felt equally by women across Australia, because far too many women are falling behind and being forgotten today.

A woman wakes in her hospital bed in Alice Springs, unable to stand because of her injuries. Her daughter hides in the street, too afraid to go home. Another woman wakes and cracks the window of her car. Condensation fogs the glass—she has slept another night in her car, unable to afford the rent and trapped by a tide of ever-rising costs. A woman knocks on the door, the same door she fled through last night. She knows she's going back into danger, but there is no other choice. A young girl looks in the mirror and says that she doesn't deserve to eat today. Her heart is filled with despair. Another walks off to school and, giving into the jibes of those around her, she tells herself that she wouldn't cut it in her career path, so she makes a different choice and she takes a different path.

Today, as we gather to recognise the journey that we have traversed to lift women up, we should not allow these stories to simply be the stories of the forgotten women of Australia. Today, it is important that we recognise the hard-won progress we've made in lifting women up, but it is equally important that we don't forget the women who are being left behind. We can all make grand speeches and pledges, but what matters is what we do and the decisions we make. So, today, on International Women's Day, let's not forget the women being left behind. Let's not let their stories go untold. As the sun rises in Australia, too many women are being forgotten, and we don't want it to get any worse.

Just this morning, parliamentarians from all political persuasions attended the unveiling of statues of Dame Enid Lyons and Dame Dorothy Tangney to mark International Women's Day. It was a real moment for this place. The statues depict the iconic moment the two dames walked into Old Parliament House 80 years ago. They were incredible women paving the way. I also want to say that the unveiling of these statues, the first statues of women in Canberra, would not have been possible without the member for Forrest. The member commissioned these statues in 2021 and has been a fighter for women well and truly before that day and ever since, as have so many of the women in this place that I have seen in my over 21 years in this parliament.

So, today, it does all start with us making a choice—a choice not to forget any women and a choice to do what's right, not to do what's popular. Time is running out for too many women, as the member for North Sydney said. I thank the House.

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