Malcolm Turnbull has dramatically improved the influence of women in the federal government, elevating women as assistant ministers and more than doubling the number in cabinet to five, including Australia's first female defence minister.
The new Prime Minister used Sunday's sweeping reshuffle to address one of the key criticisms of his predecessor Tony Abbott's government, which was a lack of women in senior ranks.
Mr Turnbull also appointed a woman, Western Australian senator Michaelia Cash, as Minister for Women – a role previously held by Mr Abbott.
But while he has elevated three women to senior positions, they are still vastly outnumbered by their male colleagues in the new 21-member cabinet.
Senator Cash has been elevated to cabinet replacing Tasmanian senator Eric Abetz as Minister for Employment. The New South Wales moderate senator Marise Payne will become Australia's first female defence minister and Victorian moderate Kelly O'Dwyer was named Small Business Minister and Assistant Treasurer.
They join deputy Liberal leader and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Minister for Health and Minister for Sport Sussan Ley, both of whom retain the ministries they held under Mr Abbott.
Senator Payne has been plucked from the relative obscurity of the outer ministry to serve in one of the government's most important portfolios in a time of war.
While the Abbott-government human services minister – who was elected to the Senate in 1997 – has had a low public profile, she is highly regarded within the government and was praised by Mr Turnbull on Sunday.
"She is one of our most experienced and capable senators," Mr Turnbull said.
"She has spent two years in the human services portfolio and has done an outstanding job in modernising government service delivery."
One of her first tasks will be to manage the release of the defence White Paper later this year.
Her elevation means that, along with Ms Bishop, two women now sit on cabinet's powerful national security committee.
Former Peter Costello adviser Ms O'Dwyer, who replaced the former Liberal treasurer in a byelection in 2009, has long been viewed as ready for a promotion.
She was a surprise omission from Mr Abbott's first frontbench but was later promoted to parliamentary secretary to the treasurer.
Her new role as Assistant Treasurer has been promoted to a cabinet position and she replaces Abbott-backer Bruce Billson as Small Business Minister.
"Of course, the Assistant Treasurer is in effect the minister for revenue and is responsible for the tax system which is at the very centre of our whole productivity agenda, indeed at the very centre of the small business agenda," Mr Turnbull said on Sunday.
Senator Cash most recently served as the Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection and as Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women and had been driving the government's response to domestic violence.
South Australian senator Anne Ruston, previously the government's deputy whip in the Senate, is the new Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources.
Mr Turnbull named New South Wales Liberal senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells as Assistant Minister for Multicultural Affairs and New South Wales Nationals senator Fiona Nash the Minister for Rural Health.
Senator Nash has been replaced as Assistant Health Minister by Western Australian MP Ken Wyatt.
Queensland backbencher Karen Andrews, who was the Abbott government's parliamentary secretary for industry and science, has had her role renamed to Assistant Minister for Science.
