Ted O'Brien tipped for shadow treasurer as MPs jockey for plum portfolios on all-Liberal frontbench
Anthony Albanese says the Nationals will get no 'reward' in terms of extra resources or staff for deserting the Coalition, as Sussan Ley considers how to fill an entire shadow ministry with only Liberal MPs.
The Liberal deputy leader, Ted O'Brien, is tipped to assume the treasury spokesperson role when Ley makes her frontbench announcement – possibly on Thursday – but most of the Liberal caucus may be in line for a shadow ministry position, after the Nationals dealt themselves out by snubbing a new Coalition agreement.
Liberals are also adamant that the Nationals' decision should mean Ley and her team receive all the extra staff traditionally given to the opposition.
When asked how extra staff would be divided up among the conservative parties, Albanese said on Wednesday: 'We'll give consideration to all of those matters. But clearly it is not reasonable that there be more staff or a reward, if you like, for the fact that you have this division.'
O'Brien, who as deputy can choose his own portfolio, is understood to be seeking treasury.
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Ley, as the new opposition leader, is expected to substantially refresh the shadow ministry formed by Peter Dutton. At a minimum, she must fill several key roles left vacant by Liberal MPs not re-elected, including foreign affairs, housing, social services, NDIS and assistant treasury.
She must also fill portfolios formerly held by Nationals members, including Indigenous Australians, water, resources, agriculture, trade, infrastructure, veterans, international development and manufacturing.
The election drubbing also wiped out a new generation of rising Liberal talent, including Keith Wolahan, Jenny Ware, James Stevens and Bridget Archer.
There are 29 ministers named in the Labor government, plus Albanese, with another 12 assistant ministers. Pending final counting, the Liberal party room – minus the Nationals – will have around 50 members, meaning most could end up with a shadow ministry or assistant role.
O'Brien's expected move into treasury leaves open his former position as energy spokesperson. A different role will also be required for the senior MP and former shadow treasurer Angus Taylor.
A common sentiment among Liberal sources was that the Nationals' split created opportunities to reposition the Liberal party after two successive defeats, without the influence of the more conservative country party. One Liberal parliamentarian said the absence of Nationals from the shadow frontbench created more promotion opportunities for Liberals.
Guardian Australia has previously reported Taylor and the Liberal senator James Paterson have both been linked to potential moves into defence or foreign affairs, with Dan Tehan and Dave Sharma also mentioned for foreign affairs. Jane Hume and Andrew Hastie may also find themselves in new positions.
Tim Wilson, the former assistant minister for energy, is expected to be vaulted into a shadow portfolio after winning back the seat of Goldstein. He told Sky News the Coalition split was a 'really exciting opportunity … to find our Liberal mojo juice again, and to stand up.'
The likes of Julian Leeser and Andrew Wallace, as well as newer rising star MPs like Zoe McKenzie, Aaron Violi and Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, could also be in line for new roles.
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Jockeying for frontbench roles, as well as staff and other parliamentary resourcing, has become a critical thread after the Coalition split.
The Liberal party will be recognised as the official opposition in parliament and name shadow ministers, while the Nationals are also expected to announce some of their members to be party spokespeople on key issues – in a similar arrangement to the Greens – also as early as Thursday.
Shadow ministers are afforded extra staff and resources, in order to uphold scrutiny and accountability of government ministers, but the same is not extended automatically to those assigned spokesperson roles.
The Nationals leader, David Littleproud, has repeatedly conceded Nationals who would have been shadow ministers will now 'take a pretty big pay cut'.
While the prime minister by convention sets the number of staff for the opposition and crossbenchers, traditionally the opposition receives about 20% of the government's staff allocation. The parliamentary library said as of May 2024, the government had 495 staff and the opposition 110.
Some Liberals are adamant their party should get all the extra opposition staff allotment.
Albanese in 2022 faced strong criticism from some on the crossbench after cutting their allocation of staff.
Albanese on Wednesday said he'd already spoken to both Ley and Littleproud about the Coalition split, but that decisions about staff for his own ministry – let alone the opposition – were not yet finalised.
'I'll have discussions with both Sussan Ley and David Littleproud about that, as well as the crossbenchers. We haven't sorted out ministerial staff yet, so there's some time to go on that,' Albanese said
'We'll continue to treat people across the parliament … with respect. Those arrangements are really a matter for them.'
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