He said in ACT Legislative Assembly:
I know that much of this debate is about social inclusion. I get that. It is easy
to say that this debate is not about taxes and charges. But I am here to tell
you that when you feel the squeeze from all directions—when you feel the pinch
from rising rates, rising land tax, rising electricity charges, rising rego
fees, rising regulatory fees in every direction—and you are pushed into a
financial space whereby you are struggling to breathe, you do not feel
included. These people feel as though they have been left out; they do not feel
included.
On a broader level, I always find it fascinating that we focus on all
of these groups who we are not going to leave behind. If you are a heterosexual,
employed white male over the age of 30, you are not really included in
anything. I know that those on the other side would say that heterosexual,
employed Anglo males have opportunities aplenty, so we do not need to look
after them; they will be okay. Madam Assistant Speaker, let me tell you that 75
per cent of suicides in this country are men, and overwhelmingly they are men
aged 30 to 54. When we commit to inclusion, we should not be picking
favourites; we should commit to including everyone.
She said in the mainstream media:
Director of the women's equality foundation 50/50 by 2030, Virginia Haussegger, said Mr Parton's comments were "foolish" and "offensive to all those not part of that privileged class".
"As Mr Parton is aware, our federal Parliament is overwhelmingly run by white, heterosexual men aged over 30, who hold the majority of power, influence and key decision-making roles," she said.
"They dominate among state premiers and chief ministers, across all three defence forces, our judiciary, academia, local government [and] across all religious denominations.
"White men aged over 30 rule the majority of Australia's publicly listed companies, they overwhelmingly control the boards, our financial institutions and our banks and operate in workplace environments that severely lack gender and ethnic diversity.
"What's more, they get paid more than women to do it."
Ms Haussegger said if Mr Parton was concerned about suicide rates among men there were better ways to draw attention to the issue.
"To suggest heterosexual, white, employed men aged over 30 are somehow missing out on attention or inclusion is not only daft, it is damaging to the gender equity project and has a heavy whiff of backlash about it," she said.
"If Mr Parton is suggesting that a particular cohort of men is struggling with mental health issues, as a result of missing out on attention, then perhaps it would be best to invite serious discussion about that important issue, rather than take a swipe at minority and disadvantaged groups who are in need of focused funding initiatives."
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