http://www.thepunch.com.au/author-bios/michaelia-cash-/ Michaelia Cash was elected to the Australian Senate for Western Australia in 2007.  She is currently Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration and Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for the Status of Women.  en Copyright 2013 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:00:10 +0000 Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:00:10 +0000 Politics, opinion, world news, sports news, latest news, views, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Nathan Rees, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Garrett, Barnaby Joyce, Australian, federal politics, opinion polls, election, The Punch, thepunch, punch ExpressionEngine 1.6.7 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 15 http://www.thepunch.com.au/images/punch-logo-rss.png http://www.thepunch.com.au/ 144 70 Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/great-to-see-eating-disorders-are-no-longer-in-vogue/ According to the Mission Australia Youth Survey released in September last year, body image ranks in the top three issues of concern for young Australians. Research shows 90% of 12-17 year old girls and 68% of 12 – 17 year old boys have been on a diet of some type, and that bulimia and anorexia are among the top ten causes of burden of disease and injury in young women in Australia. So in announcing The Health Initiative this week, Vogue’s editors have shown not just that they understand the powerful influence their magazines and the wider fashion industry wields over the public’s ideas about what a normal body looks like, but also that they are prepared to show leadership and a degree of corporate social responsibility in their industry. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Michaelia Cash ) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/great-to-see-eating-disorders-are-no-longer-in-vogue/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/great-to-see-eating-disorders-are-no-longer-in-vogue/#item8423 Sun, 06 May 2012 19:30:37 +0000 Michaelia Cash | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/nanny-plan-about-economics-not-polishing-the-silver/ Childcare should not be a battle ground. Parents need to be able to make a living for themselves and provide a future for their children. They should not be penalised by a system that makes going to work impractical or expensive. Tony Abbott’s plan to ask the Productivity Commission to look at the best ways to provide childcare is a commitment to review the options and see how childcare can be changed to make life easier for mums and dads, and ensure access is available in the city and the country. If in-home care turns out to be the common-sense option, we will pursue it, and it will be a great complement to the Coalition’s six-month paid parental leave scheme. The hysteria the Government has tried to create over this announcement by claiming child care assistance will be cut, or that this is welfare for the wealthy is nonsense. This is not about providing nannies for millionaires or cutting important help for low income working families. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Michaelia Cash ) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/nanny-plan-about-economics-not-polishing-the-silver/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/nanny-plan-about-economics-not-polishing-the-silver/#item8121 Wed, 28 Mar 2012 19:50:56 +0000 Michaelia Cash | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/we-need-to-talk-about-the-alien-burqa/ In light of laws which have recently come into effect France banning the wearing of the niqab and burqa, and WA Minister for Women’s Interests Robyn McSweeney’s recent comments that she finds the burqa to be ‘a very oppressive garment’, Senator Michaelia Cash, opposition spokesperson for the Status of Women, outlines her thoughts on the veiled women in Australia. Much has been made of the debate over whether women living in Australia should wear a burqa. As a Liberal, I believe in a free, fair, open and democratic society where people have the right to make their own choices about the way they live their lives. It is my opinion however that the wearing of not only the burqa, but any apparel that completely covers a person’s face, is alien to our Australian culture and our values. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Michaelia Cash ) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/we-need-to-talk-about-the-alien-burqa/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/we-need-to-talk-about-the-alien-burqa/#item5624 Wed, 13 Apr 2011 19:45:04 +0000 Michaelia Cash | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/aussie-women-you-think-youve-got-it-bad/ Today marks the hundredth anniversary of International Women’s Day.  It is an occasion to celebrate the achievements of women, to reflect on how far women have progressed on the journey towards equality in the last century, but also to recognise that significant challenges remain, here and abroad.  The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is “Female Leadership and Political Participation” and, on this score, Australia has much to celebrate.  One hundred years ago, we were one of only three countries in the world that could boast women’s suffrage. The significance of this achievement is evident when one reflects that Kuwait’s Parliament extended suffrage to women in 2005 and only then by a 35-23 vote, and in Saudi Arabia women are still deprived of voting rights.  feedback@thepunch.com.au (Michaelia Cash ) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/aussie-women-you-think-youve-got-it-bad/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/aussie-women-you-think-youve-got-it-bad/#item5325 Mon, 07 Mar 2011 19:50:57 +0000 Michaelia Cash | Author bios | The Punch