A Melbourne University Liberal Club president who told a female member she shouldn't come to a club event because some men might feel "a bit uncomfortable" was talking "rubbish", says a spokesman for the national body for Liberal students.
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Club president Xavier Boffa, who also works for state shadow attorney-general John Pesutto, had written a message to the woman, saying he wanted to invite her to an event but hadn't because "a couple of the guys were a bit uncomfortable about inviting a chick".
The woman spoke about it at the club's annual general meeting last month.
Mr Boffa's comments were not representative of attitudes of others in the Liberal student movement, said Blake Young, vice-president of the Australian Liberal Students Federation, of which the Victorian club is an affiliate.
Mr Young said Liberal student clubs across Australia tried to encourage female membership and involvement by young women in poliltics.
"It's really unfortunate to hear this comment being made to an aspiring young woman, because it undermines all this good work," he said.
"I've been involved in the Liberal Party for six years now, and never once have I heard anything like that. The sort of rubbish we've heard from Xavier's comment is the sort of thing we've tried to expunge."
Mr Young, who is also president of the University of Tasmania Liberal Club, said there were no national figures on the percentage of female student members, but about 20 per cent of his club's members were female.
He said the club encouraged women to seek leadership positions: "It's about identifying women who have that initiative and that spark about them."
It is not the first time that the Melbourne University club has come under fire over misogyny – in 2014 leaked Facebook posts from members described women as "sluts" and Muslims as "degenerates", and said all feminists were ugly. There are just a handful of active female members involved in the club.
In an email sent to Melbourne University Liberal Club members on Sunday, Mr Boffa expressed disappointment at individuals who sought to use the "left-wing media" to smear the club, but did not refer directly to his comment to the female member.
"They have made baseless accusations that are at best untrue and at worst defamatory, and which they do not even have the conviction to put their names to," his email said.
He had previously confirmed to Fairfax Media that he had sent the message, but made no further comment.
Club members who spoke to Fairfax said the event in question was held in November at a city bar and attended only by Liberal Club members and alumni.
Nationally, the Liberal Party has low levels of female representation as members of parliament: 18 of its 84 MPs – 21 per cent – are women.
The rate is 14 per cent in the Nationals, 44 per cent for the Labor Party and 50 per cent for the Greens.
At a state level, Opposition Leader Matthew Guy is keen to boost the representation of women in Parliament and has set an ambitious target of 37 per cent in 2018 and almost half by 2022.
