Australian FM says gov't needs to "attract" more women to parliament

Australia's Foreign Minister has backed colleagues' calls to set a target for equal representation for women in Parliament on Wednesday.

Speaking to Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio, Australia's most senior female minister Julie Bishop said she was fully in support of increasing diversity in both the upper and lower houses of parliament.

However Bishop said a proposed target of 30 percent was too conservative, calling for fully equal representation.

"Of course we should always strive to increase the level of diversity in the Parliament - not just in relation to women but across the pre-selection and election process," she said on Wednesday.

"In the case of women, I'm not sure why 30 percent would be seen as a target. Why not aim for 50 percent if it's to be truly representative?"

But Bishop admitted that women shouldn't be selected for the sake of having women in parliament, telling the ABC that merit should play a pivotal role in choosing the right candidate to represent the Australian people.

She said both the government and the opposition had to work hard to make parliament a more attractive prospect for women in the workforce.

"Well, candidates should be selected on merit, but the Liberal Party is mindful of the need to attract a diverse range of candidates, including more women," she said.

"We've got a strong record of pre-selecting women in Liberal seats, as well as in marginal seats, and many women have successfully retained their seats." Endi