Labor party

On Monday afternoon the deputy leader of the Labor party, Tanya Plibersek, announced she would not run for the party’s top leadership position.

For some time it’s been obvious that the federal Coalition & the Liberal Party in particular, has a significant “woman problem” but it’s not just them.

The Victorian Labor government has achieved a gender equal cabinet for the first time with the appointment of three new women.

Nicola Roxon’s valedictorian speech to parliament on Tuesday got me thinking about success and how our definition of success can and should shift according to our changing circumstances.

The press gallery will be happy: there’s been a leadership spill, a prime minister dumped, mass cabinet resignations, plenty of action.

As Labor’s recent period of extraordinary internal harmony shatters, former cabinet minister Nicola Roxon has excoriated Kevin Rudd, forensically detailing his bad behaviour and declaring he should leave parliament for Labor’s good.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard called a ballot for the Labor leadership at 7pm tonight.

Julia GIllard’s farewell speech saw her outline her outline the key policy achievements she is most proud of, address what it meant to be Australia’s first female prime minister, and congratulate Kevin Rudd on winning the leadership.