Latest news with #LiberalParty
Time of India
an hour ago
- Politics
- Time of India
'On Your Side': Colombian Ex-Prez Supports India, Snubs Govt Stand On Op Sindoor
'On Your Side': Colombian Ex-Prez Supports India, Snubs Govt Stand On Op Sindoor | Shashi Tharoor Source: Colombia's former President César Gaviria expressed strong support for India's actions against terrorism, diverging from Bogotá's official stance. 'We reject any kind of terrorism,' Gaviria stated after meeting an Indian all-party delegation led by Shashi Tharoor. This comes days after Colombia officially condoled Pakistani casualties from India's Op Sindoor strikes. Tharoor had criticized Colombia's response, calling it 'disappointing,' and stressed there can be 'no equivalence between terror dispatchers and self-defenders.' Gaviria, also leader of Colombia's Liberal Party, voiced clear solidarity with 'friend' India.#colombia #india #antiterrorism #operationsindoor #shashitharoor #pakistanterrorism #pahalgammassacre #indiadiplomacy #globalterrorism #cesargaviriantrujillo #indiapakistan #foreignrelations #counterterrorism #southasia #latinamerica #indiaonterror #internationalrelations #indiastrong #toi #toibharat
CBC
an hour ago
- Business
- CBC
Poilievre says he'll support Carney's expected project-approval bill if it ‘gets things done quickly'
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said his party would have to look at a proposed Liberal bill that aims to fast-track major projects and remove trade barriers before backing it.
The Guardian
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Secret figures show Liberal party's ageing membership in freefall in NSW and Victoria
The Liberal party's ageing membership is in freefall in Australia's two most populous states, according to multiple party sources, with one claiming their branch's biggest expense in recent years has become 'funeral wreaths'. The Liberals were decimated in major cities at the federal election, losing the Victorian seats of Menzies and Deakin as well as Banks and Hughes in Sydney and possibly Bradfield, where the electoral commission is conducting a recount. The story in the other capitals was no better. Party membership numbers are closely guarded by office bearers, but Guardian Australia has spoken to several party sources in both New South Wales and Victoria, who were willing to disclosure figures on the condition they were not named. In Victoria, three sources said membership numbers were between 9,000 and 10,000, with the majority based in the federal electorates of Kooyong, held by teal independent Monique Ryan, and Goldstein, which will likely be won by Liberal Tim Wilson. A former member of the Victorian Liberal executive said the division had about 15,000 members close to 20 years ago. The party has since shed members, according to the source, and the average age of those who remain has climbed to 68. 'One of the biggest expenses we used to have [at our local branch] was on funeral wreaths,' they said. 'We'd be down at the florist every week handing over $70.' Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Both state divisions are urging members to renew their annual memberships after a bruising federal election loss. One Victorian source said as of mid-May, about 30% of members had not renewed. In NSW, one Liberal source said party membership dipped below 10,000 after the state election loss in March 2023, before climbing to close to 12,000 by the end of the year. Another source said the current numbers were somewhere between 8,000 and 10,000. Earlier this month, NSW Liberal officials confirmed about 5,000 people had allowed their membership to lapse in recent years. In an opinion piece in the Australian Financial Review, they blamed the decline on factional fighting in branches. 'Our membership has declined by more than 1,000 in just a year, many branches refuse to support in any way their sitting MP not of their faction and we have lost successive state and federal elections,' three senior party elders wrote. Slightly more than 600 applicants have been refused membership, according to the party officials, due to concerns they may impact the power balance within branches. The NSW Liberal party's annual disclosures to the state electoral commission also show a significant drop in revenue from members. In 2018-19, the party generated $1.38m from 'paid individuals' who had either a membership, an affiliation or a party subscription. That figure dropped to $836,770 last financial year, according to disclosures. 'We need to actively go out and seek people and build personal relationships with them in an organisation that isn't transactional, but transformational,' said one NSW Liberal source. 'It's not about getting people to door knock or donate, it's about working together to help change government policy.' Several Liberal sources in both states, including federal MPs, have complained about losing volunteers and donors to third-party groups, such as Advance Australia. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion In Victoria, Advance's federal election campaign was bankrolled by a $500,000 donation from the state branch's nominated entity, the Cormack Foundation. When contacted for a response to these concerns earlier this month, Advance's executive director, Matthew Sheahan, accused 'bed-wetting anonymous Liberals' of 'looking to blame everyone but themselves'. One former Liberal, who is now involved in political campaigns for third-party groups, said they used to direct members from seats such as Goldstein and Kooyong to other electorates in Victoria. But since the rise of teal independents, they were now required in their own seats. They said as a result, the party had become increasingly dependent on 'non-cause actors', who are not party members, to support them at other, marginal polling booths. They referred to reports that members of the Exclusive Brethren religious sect were handed out how-to-vote cards before the 3 May poll, despite the church barring followers from voting. 'Labor has the labour movement, the Greens the environment, Nationals the country,' the source said. 'The Liberals aren't a movement. Maybe, back in the day, they were an anti-communist movement but there are no communists in Labor any more.' One Victorian Liberal MP downplayed the drop in numbers and said a decline in volunteers was common across almost all community groups – not just political organisations. They said the cost of living had contributed to a 'slight decline' in membership. Sussan Ley, on being elected as leader, pledged to rebuild the party in major cities and appeal to a broader subsection of Australian society. 'If we stay focused, our political movement has the foundations to rebuild and once again guide Australians toward a better future,' Ley said earlier this month. 'That starts with accepting the fact that Australians sent a clear message at the election. We must listen, change and develop a fresh approach.' With additional reporting by Anne Davies
Calgary Herald
5 hours ago
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Opinion: PM Carney wants Canada to be an energy superpower - here's how he can prove it
Article content Prime Minister Mark Carney says he wants Canada to become an energy superpower. That's the right goal, and now that he's in charge, it's time to back up his lofty words with real action – here's how he can prove it. Article content Article content Canadian liquefied natural gas (LNG) is one of the most significant opportunities for Canada to grow its economy and create good, mortgage-paying jobs for Canadians. Several projects are awaiting final approval: Phase 2 of the LNG Canada project, Ksi Lisims LNG, and Woodfibre are just some examples. Getting these projects approved and built quickly would show authentic leadership. Article content Article content Article content Pipelines are key to moving natural gas and oil safely across Canada, but the Liberal Party's 2025 election platform doesn't even mention them. Canada has some of the world's largest natural gas and oil reserves. Without this enabling infrastructure, our reserves are just another wasted Canadian opportunity, and our aspiration of becoming an energy superpower is just another political platitude. Article content Prime Minister Carney has said he supports the energy sector. Still, he remains frustratingly unclear about whether he considers pipelines one of his 'nation-building projects'. Carney said he is looking for an international consensus on pipelines. Minister Guilbeault recently threw cold water on the idea of any new projects. Getting consensus from the provinces will be hard if he cannot even find it within his cabinet. This is the kind of uncertainty that makes investors nervous. The prime minister must give a clear message: Canada supports responsible natural gas and oil development. Article content Article content Scrap the cap Article content The proposed cap on Canada's natural gas and oil industry must be scrapped immediately. Third-party experts, including Canada's parliamentary budget officer, have provided overwhelming evidence that this policy will limit production in the industry. Only the federal government – and activists – continue to declare the opposite. They're wrong, and keeping this cap will send a damaging signal to investors who are already hesitant about investing in Canada. Article content Carney has promised to get major projects approved in under two years. But C-69, the 'no more pipelines' bill, has made getting energy projects approved nearly impossible. Ten years to a no is not a process – it's paralysis.
Sky News AU
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Allan government urged to legislate two-year jail sentences for anyone caught with machete on the streets in Victoria
Premier Jacinta Allan is being urged to introduce two-year jail terms for anyone caught on Victorian streets carrying a machete ahead of a total ban in September. The state government used "extraordinary powers" to fast track a total ban on sales of machetes on Wednesday following two scary public incidents last weekend. On May 24, police were called to South Melbourne to reports a man was armed with a machete. While officers apprehended the man, a woman drove at them in a car. Police shot into the vehicle, fatally hitting a 34-year-old woman. While on Sunday, officers were called to Northland Shopping Centre in the city's north to reports a group of youths were fighting which allegedly saw machetes produced. Shoppers could be seen running for their lives in scenes reminiscent to the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing attack in Sydney that claimed the lives of six people. Victoria's shadow police minister David Southwick said the Liberal Party had pushed to ban machetes five times in the past 15 months, which the government knocked back. He also argued the ban put in place was on sales and not possession. "So you can still carry one around," Mr Southwick told Sky News host Steve Price. The Caufield MP also raised concerns about the days leading up to the ban, claiming retailers were selling machetes for $4 to get rid of stock. "When the ban finally comes into play... are they hoping the $4 machetes that have been sold off will be handed into a police station in four month's time?" he asked. There has also been confusion around the description of a machete. Prior to the ban, the Victorian government said a machete is "broadly" classified as a "cutting edge knife with a blade of more than 20 centimetres". But on the day the restriction came in place, director of Consumer Affairs Victoria Nicole Rich said there were no particular lengths of the banned knives. The government has previously shown examples of machetes. Mr Southwick said he could not define the banned weapon and questioned how the government and police will encourage people to hand them in. He pushed for jail terms for anyone caught on the street with them. "What we've been calling for is pretty plain and simple: if you carry one on the street you should face a jail term of two years and the government won't legislate that until September. So between now and September people have got a holiday to carry them around on the streets, they just can't buy them from a retail store," he said. The government said an amnesty will begin from September 1 to November 30 where people can dispose machetes into bins at safe locations and police stations. In a statement, Ms Allan said community safety was her priority. "We must never let places we meet become places we fear," she said. 'I hate these knives and I will keep introducing as many laws as it takes to get them off our streets, out of our shops and out of our lives.'
