The funding, labelled as ‘significant’, is slated to be targeted at a range of measures, to be revealed during the September sitting of Parliament by the Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer.
“Obviously I’m not going to talk about dollar figures,” O’Dwyer told the ABC. “It’s fair to say the prime minister has always had a focus on women.”
The funding move follows concerns raised in O’Dwyer’s recent National Press Club address, in which she outlined the need to ensure women’s economic security.
“If women are to have real choices and access the opportunities that flow from that they need to be economically secure,” O’Dwyer told Women’s Agenda at the time. “My ambition is to be able to put in place a framework that can help deliver that for all women.”
She also said no one should have their career penalised as a result of being a parent. “That shouldn’t be a natural consequence of having a child,” she said.
Last night on ABC’s National Wrap O’Dwyer also expressed ‘dismay’ at concerns raised in some segments of the media about the push to get more women on boards.
“There is no question that we have appropriately qualified women who absolutely deserve to sit around the boardroom table,” she said.
“It’s entirely appropriate that we have got targets in place to try and ensure that those women of merit sit around the boardroom table.
“We’ve got men and women of equal talent and ability.”
“I think that it is entirely appropriate that we have got targets in place to try and ensure that those women of merit sit around the boardroom table,” Minister for Women @KellyODwyer tells @PatsKarvelas on #NationalWrap. #auspol pic.twitter.com/65w2BZxoNC
— ABC News (@abcnews) May 6, 2018