Ms Rachel Coyle:

We thank the Senator for his approval. To address his question directly, we never claimed to speak for all women. We are a membership organisation and we are mandated by our members with regard to our policy approach. We are an unapologetic feminist organisation. I want to be very clear about that.

With regard to the other items the Senator raised, the changes and improvements for women in this country were brought about as a result of women's activism. I want to be clear about that as well. It was decades and decades of campaign work by fearless women that brought about improvements for women in this country.

The Senator is absolutely right with regard to women in community affairs. We see women really lifting the mantle in their local communities but how are they compensated for their time in doing this? We talk about care work and the unfair burden on women in shouldering some of that. It is the same in the community and voluntary sector. Women should be compensated for their time. We should not always be relying on people to volunteer their time. People's financial pressures have really changed in the last decade. Our community and voluntary sector needs to be reflective of that.

The Senator mentioned barriers at conventions. It is fair to use the term "token" but he is right, when people are on the ticket, they have to do the work and get themselves elected. However, the actual barriers at convention are very well documented. I would be happy to send the Senator on further information about that.