Latest news with #CoalitionSplit
The Guardian
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Nationals and Liberals at odds over reasons for Coalition split as Ley tries to mend fences
David Littleproud says the historic Coalition split was only about key policy promises for regional Australia, rejecting claims he demanded that Nationals in the shadow ministry be free to speak out against Coalition policy. Argument over the reasons behind the breakup comes as the opposition leader, Sussan Ley, has sought discussions with Nationals who opposed the split, as part of efforts to try to repair the breach. Ley has approached former leaders Barnaby Joyce and Michael McCormack as well as frontbencher Darren Chesters as she seeks reconciliation. Ley said this week the Nationals had sought changes to the practice of shadow cabinet solidarity, a rule that requires frontbenchers to advocate for the party's settled position regardless of their personal views. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email But Littleproud said on Thursday morning the breakdown was only because of four policy demands: for the introduction of nuclear power, forced break-up powers for the big supermarkets, a $20bn regional infrastructure fund and telecommunication service guarantees in the bush. 'I didn't think that was too much to expect,' Littleproud said. 'We couldn't get a guarantee on that, sadly, but we stand ready. If we can get a guarantee on that, then our door is open.' On Wednesday the Nationals' Senate leader, Bridget McKenzie, was asked on the ABC's 7.30 program if Ley was lying when stating the Nationals' shadow ministers wanted to break cabinet solidarity as a condition of a new coalition agreement. McKenzie said it was 'not part of our consideration' and Nationals' demands were limited to the four policy ultimatums. But Ley's office pushed back during the live interview, texting the ABC to insist that it was 'not correct to suggest that shadow cabinet solidarity was not a sticking point'. Asked on ABC TV about the breakdown on cabinet solidarity, Littleproud said Ley's response on the question was 'satisfactory and reasonable and fair'. 'It wasn't up for debate in our party room because I believed what she sent back was more than reasonable.' Littleproud said the Nationals' position on the voice to parliament debate had set back relations with former opposition leader Peter Dutton in the last term of parliament. He refused to say if he sought to be made deputy opposition leader, over Ley's deputy Liberal leader, Ted O'Brien. The growing spat follows publication of a letter from McKenzie to the Liberal Senate leader, Michaelia Cash, sent before the split, in which she warned the junior partner would have to consider whether it continued to sit with the Liberals in the Senate after Jacinta Nampijinpa Price's defection to the Liberals. Sign up to Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion McKenzie's letter was first published by on Thursday. She raised party status for the Nationals in the Senate after Nampijinpa Price moved to join the Liberal party room to stand as deputy leader earlier this month. 'Depending on the outcome of negotiations between our two parties over coming weeks, the Nationals Senate party room will need to consider our position with respect to sitting with the Liberal party as Coalition in the Senate chamber,'' McKenzie wrote. Within days the two parties had formally split for the first time since the late 1980s, badly weakening both in parliament and making it difficult for the Liberals to challenge Labor at the next election. Former prime minister Tony Abbott joined the growing debate on Thursday, calling the split bad for both sides on Sydney radio 2GB. 'If the Libs and the Nats go their separate ways, we won't have one strong opposition, we'll have two opposition parties that are fighting each other as much as they're fighting a bad government,' he said. 'That's a recipe for permanent opposition and that's a recipe for permanent poor government in our country.' The deputy Nationals leader, Kevin Hogan, said the split was driven by principles and acknowledged the party could pay a price at the next election, including the loss of Senate spots in Victoria and New South Wales, due to an end of joint tickets with the Liberals. 'We've lost shadow cabinet positions around this … It was a decision that two of our senators could make at great cost to them,' he said.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Dramatic moment ABC host interrupts her segment to reveal a scathing note from Sussan Ley as Coalition women go to war
The bitter Coalition split erupted live on national television, with tensions boiling over as Liberal leader Sussan Ley's team dramatically texted into the ABC studio to publicly contradict Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie during her appearance on 7.30. In a fiery interview with journalist Sarah Ferguson, McKenzie claimed the sole reason for the rupture was Ley's refusal to guarantee four key policy ultimatums - a move she said left the Nationals no choice but to walk. The party had requested the Coalition maintain policies on supermarket divestiture powers, regional phone coverage, nuclear energy, and the Regional Australia Future Fund. 'Sussan Ley could not give our party room the guarantee we sought,' Senator McKenzie said. 'She couldn't give that guarantee to us. She refused to. She put it in writing. 'We put that to our party room, and our party room decided we were to leave the coalition.' McKenzie strongly denied that the fallout was over the National's desire for their shadow cabinet members to be free from obeying the rules of sticking to overall Coalition cabinet decisions. 'I can tell you, because I was in the National party room that made this decision, the decision that was then conveyed to the Liberal leader. And that was not part of our consideration … it was solely on those four policies,' she said. But while Senator McKenzie was on air, the team of Liberals leader Sussan Ley was texting into the studio, refuting the claims. 'It is not correct to suggest shadow cabinet solidarity was not a sticking point,' the text said. 'We have it in writing that it was a requirement from their leader's office to ours.' Ley's office texted again to add: '(McKenzie's) language was deliberate to make it sound like it was just about the policies. That is just not correct.' When the texts were put to McKenzie, she told ABC in a statement that she stood by her comments. 'The claims made above were not the basis of the Nationals party room decision not to form a Coalition at this time,' she said. Viewers who witnessed the tense interview and Ferguson reading out the text declared it was 'all out war now' on social media. 'Factional bloodsport dressed up as leadership,' one user said. Another commented: 'They ain't getting back together anytime soon and I don't think therapy with Howard or Abbott will bring a union either.' Tension had been growing between the two former Coalition partners since the Labor's federal election landslide on May 3. Division was only made worse when Senator Jacinta Price defected from the Nationals to sit with the Liberal party to run in a joint-ticket for leadership with Angus Taylor. After the former shadow treasurer was defeated, Price withdrew her hat from the ring. The Coalition has only split three times in the last 100 years. The last time was in 1987 over the 'Joh for Canberra' campaign, which pushed for Queensland National Party premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen to become Prime Minister. Then, the two parties split for a matter of months before the rift healed after the 1987 federal election.
News.com.au
21-05-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
‘Smoking gun': Liberals claim leaked letter proves the Nationals planned to blow up Coalition
A bombshell leaked letter is the 'smoking gun' according to furious Liberals that Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie was hellbent on splitting up the Coalition after the election and the defection of a high-profile senator. Despite the Nationals claims that the Coalition agreement was blown up over a standoff over key policies including nuclear power, the letter obtained by makes clear that a split was on the cards as an option before Sussan Ley was even elected leader. It was sent to Liberal Senate leader Michaelia Cash on May 12, 2025, just days after Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price quit the Nationals party room to join the Liberal Party. At the time, she announced she was running for deputy Liberal leader on a ticket with Angus Taylor before she 'chickened out' when Angus Taylor lost the ballot. She declined to put her hand up in the party room despite publicly announcing her candidacy. But the leaked letter lays bare the Nationals' fury over the defection because of the impact it would have on the Nationals own status in the Senate. Titled 'Resignation of Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price from The Nationals Senate Party Room', the letter expressly warns that a Coalition split is a one option on the table. 'On 9 May 2025 Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price wrote to inform me of her resignation from the Nationals Senate Party room,'' Senator McKenzie wrote. 'It is understood Senator Nampijinpa Price's defection to sit in the Liberal Party room is associated with overtures from the Liberal Party and an intention to stand for a leadership position in the Parliamentary Liberal Party. 'As a result of her defection, together with the severe drop in Liberal Party vote in New South Wales, from 1 July 2025 The Nationals will hold only four seats in the Senate. 'This is below what is required to maintain party status in the Senate as a party that is 'part of the Government or the Opposition' under the Parliamentary Business Resources Regulations 2017. 'Losing party status in the Senate would have significant implications for The Nationals Senate team as well as the wider Coalition.' The final sentence in the letter contains the clear warning that a split is a real possibility. 'Depending on the outcome of negotiations between our two parties over coming weeks, The Nationals Senate Party room will need to consider our position with respect to sitting with the Liberal Party as Coalition in the Senate chamber,'' Ms McKenzie wrote. Just 24 hours later Sussan Ley was elected the Liberal leader on Tuesday, May 13 and just seven days later the Coalition would implode for the first time since the 1980s. Negotiations with the Nationals had commenced immediately with Nationals leader David Littleproud travelling to Albury to hold talks with Ms Ley as she cared for her dying mother who was in end of life care. Her mother, the late Angela Braybrooks, died just a few days later on Saturday, May 17. The Nationals negotiations with Ms Ley continued as she planned the funeral with a series of texts exchanged between the pair before the Nationals met in Canberra on Tuesday, May 20. Liberal sources have described the letter as a 'smoking gun' that the Nationals list of 'impossible demands' was a negotiation that had one destination in mind: a split in the Coalition. But contacted over the Liberals claims, Senator McKenzie denied that she expected the Coalition would split when she wrote the letter to Senator Michaelia Cash. 'In no way could I have foreseen the current situation when I penned that letter,'' Senator McKenzie told 'I knew I had till June 30 to find a solution and hoped we could find a resolution.' Overnight, the Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie has also taken a swipe at Liberal leader Sussan Ley insisting the real issue was that key policies including nuclear power could not be guaranteed by the party's new leader moving forward. 'The issue here is that Sussan Ley could not give our party room the guarantee we sought to actually ensure that divestiture powers for supermarkets, mobile phone coverage for our communities in emergencies and to run their businesses, lifting the moratorium on nuclear, and the retention of the Regional Australia Future Fund – the $20 billion Future Fund that would underpin our local economies going forward – were going to be Coalition policies going forward,' Senator McKenzie told ABC's 7.30 on Wednesday. 'She couldn't give that guarantee to us. She refused to. She put it in writing. We put that to our party room, and our party room decided we were to leave the Coalition.' 'In our game, we actually ask for this in writing. And it was provided to our leader in writing that she could not guarantee those four policies,' she continued. 'And that was enough for our party room to make the decision that it did.' However, understands that rather than a letter, Sussan Ley was texting David Littleproud as she was trying to organise her mother's funeral. Former Prime Minister John Howard has described the split as 'stupid'. Tony Abbott has called for the immediate reformation of the Coalition to bring a 'strong critique' to the current government. 'I deeply regret the Coalition split and hope that it can be re-formed as soon as possible,' he wrote on X. 'History shows that the Liberals and the Nationals win together and fail separately. What's needed right now is a strong critique of a deeply underwhelming government and the development of a clear policy alternative. It's understood that former Nationals leaders Michael McCormack and Barnaby Joyce voiced concerns about the split in the Nationals party room. Veteran Nationals MP Darren Chester revealed he's talking with colleagues 'across the political divide' to get the Coalition back together. 'My concern is that we will be giving Labor a free pass if we go back to parliament some time in the next month or so as two divided parties,' he told the ABC. 'We owe it to our supporters to have another crack at forming a coalition in the interests of providing a strong and stable opposition … if we want to deliver for regional Australia as Nationals, we need to be in government.'
ABC News
21-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Anthony Albanese has rare opportunity to make reforms after Coalition split
The best description of this week's Coalition split came from Treasurer Jim Chalmers in the hours after the bombshell break-up. It was, Chalmers said, a "seismic event" in Australian politics. And here's the thing about seismic events: they are typically felt far beyond the earthquake epicentre, with rolling aftershocks that can be unpredictable. Ground zero for this seismic event was the National Party. Most of its MPs chose to split from the Liberals. They will now wear the most immediate damage. The move was driven by fear amongst these Nationals that the Liberals might just re-position to the political centre after their election wipe-out in metropolitan Australia. As Nationals leader David Littleproud put it to the ABC: "We can't get caught up in the rediscovery of the Liberal Party." It's a fundamental rejection of new Liberal leader Sussan Ley's pledge to "modernise" the party. Not all Nationals agreed it was a smart move to walk away from the only thing that gives them a shot at being in government. The party is divided on this. Some fear they'll end up shouting at clouds about all the things they'd like to do, without any power to do them. As the reality of the party's diminished status in parliament and the broader political conversation sinks in, tensions are only likely to build. Meanwhile, what sort of "modern" Liberal Party emerges from this break-up is also unclear. Will it be a more moderate party? Or will conservatives prevent Ley from re-positioning too far? Is further splintering possible? Most Liberals want to reconcile quickly with the Nationals. Some are considering other options, including potential "rainbow coalitions" with independents. The dust is far from settled on this seismic event, which has ramifications for Labor too. Three weeks ago, Labor was simply hoping to win a majority. Now, Anthony Albanese holds a commanding position, surveying the wreckage on the other side. Historians can argue the toss, but it's difficult to recall a government being in such a position of strength. A huge majority in the House, multiple pathways now in the Senate to pass legislation, and a literally divided and demoralised opposition. Labor now has options when it comes to implanting its agenda. It can work with either the Greens or the "modernised" Liberals to pass environment laws or a new 2035 emissions target, without worrying about the Nationals. This position of political security also raises the prospect of going further and taking on difficult reforms necessary to fix the budget deficit and boost productivity. The sort of reforms voters are saying they're up for. A post-election survey conducted by JWS Research shows a strong majority of voters, across different age and income groups, want the government to seize the moment after its landslide win and do something big. The research shows 81 per cent of voters agree the government should tackle more difficult and complex reforms in this parliamentary term to grow the economy and balance the budget. Sixty-one per cent also agree the government should put a higher focus on boosting productivity in its second term, as Chalmers indicated he would when he appeared on Insiders the morning after the election. Clearly, these strong levels of support for undefined "reform" may fall once specific ideas are laid out, particularly if they involve some level of personal financial pain. But these are still strong grounds upon which to build a reform agenda. Labor, of course, argues it already has plenty of reform to get on with, from rebuilding Medicare to the renewable energy transition. And the man who helped deliver Labor this stunning victory, ALP Secretary Paul Erickson warns against any post-election over-reach. "The best approach is for Labor to stay focused on the agenda that we campaigned on and sought a mandate for," he told the National Press Club yesterday. But if Labor doesn't do anything beyond what it took to the election, historians may look back on this moment of extraordinary political strength for the government as a wasted opportunity. Erickson isn't closed to the idea of pursuing further reform but cites the political mantra of "taking the people with you". That means spending time making the argument about what needs fixing and how a proposed solution will deliver benefits. After arriving back from Rome early yesterday, the prime minister is taking a couple of well-deserved days off. After that, he'll need to assess how the seismic events of this week are re-shaping the political landscape and the opportunities this has opened up. David Speers is national political lead and host of Insiders, which airs on ABC TV at 9am on Sunday or on iview.
News.com.au
20-05-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
Federal politics live: Matt Canavan confronted over John Howard's warning
The Nationals are dealing with the fallout from their decision to 'blow up' the Coalition agreement this morning amid predictions it could last for three long years. Leadership challenger Matt Canavan has revealed this morning that the climate wars are a factor. He's suggested that his fight to dump net zero targets is one of the factors not listed on the Nationals list of demands that will be easier to pursue while the two parties 'take a break'. National Party leader David Littleproud announced on Tuesday that the party will dump the Coalition agreement in the wake of the disastrous election result. He is blaming a fight over the four policy issues including the future of nuclear power and supermarket divestitures. Overnight, he's appeared on the ABC's 7:30, and he's been hit by a brutal question over who is to blame for the Coalition split. 'Who blew up the Coalition – the National Party or the Liberal Party?' host Sarah Ferguson asked. Mr Littleproud was unrepentant, insisting that it was a big call that had to be made. 'We could not get an iron-clad guarantee,' he said. Liberal leader Sussan Ley has revealed she fears one of the real reasons the Coalition split was over the Nationals wanting to cross the floor on climate change, including net zero targets. The Nationals have listed the big factors as nuclear as part of the energy mix, divestiture powers for supermarkets as a last resort, an off-budget fund for the regions, and mobile phone access renegotiation agreements in the bush.
