Safe Liberal seat 'not for a woman'

The pre-selection battle for Peter Costello's parliamentary seat has taken a sexist turn, with Liberal Party figures reportedly arguing the blue ribbon Melbourne electorate was "not a seat for a woman".

Higgins in inner-eastern Melbourne is one of the most sought-after positions for aspiring Liberal politicians but The Age has reported discontent in the party over Kelly O'Dwyer, one of the contenders.

The 32-year-old NAB executive is considered a rising star and is a favourite to win the vote when a ballot is taken next Thursday.

But MP Sophie Mirabella has told The Age that preselectors were told Higgins was "not a seat for a woman because it's a leadership seat".

"This sort of attack purely on gender is an insult to every woman in the Liberal Party," the opposition spokesperson on women's affairs said.

"It's inconceivable in the Liberal Party that I know to use gender as an argument to vote against anyone."

The revelation comes as an embarrassment for the Liberal Party after it was revealed today that Coalition MPs ask only 8.4 percent of questions in Parliament, despite making up 20 percent of the party room.

The coalition was not doing enough to promote the roles of women and was severely out of touch, Labor backbencher Amanda Rishworth said.

"I might not agree with their policies, but there are strong women in the Liberal Party ... that deserve to have a say," she told reporters in Canberra.

"The coalition needs to do a lot more in promoting women."

But male Liberal MPs said the issue was a storm in a teacup.

"I thought question time was a time to ask questions of ministers on issues that are important on the day," backbencher Jamie Briggs said.

"I didn't realise you didn't have to share it around on some sort of balance, (so) I'll be asking for my share of the questions each week."

Ms O'Dwyer's opponent for pre-selection for Higgins is 53-year-old multi-millionaire Andrew Abercrombie.

If she is successful in the pre-selection vote to take place on Thursday, Ms O'Dwyer will be the first Liberal woman to be selected for a Melbourne metropolitan seat.