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News.com.au
29-06-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
NSW Liberal leader says women and young people have a ‘seat at the table' after election loss
NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman says women and young people have a 'seat at the table' in the state's Liberal branch amid calls to end federal intervention in the party following their bruising loss at last month's election. Liberal leader Sussan Ley confirmed earlier this month the federal takeover of the NSW division would continue until at least March 2026 but without ex-Victorian Liberal treasurer Alan Stockdale and ex-senator Richard Alston. Mr Stockdale stirred controversy when he told the NSW Liberal Women's Council in early June that 'women are sufficiently assertive now that we should be giving some thought to whether we need to protect men's involvement'. The comments sparked quick condemnation from Ms Ley as well as Queensland and NSW members of the Liberal Party whose NSW branch is often seen as being more moderate, including on issues such as women's involvement. In an exclusive interview, Mr Speakman said the NSW Liberal Party had made 'great strides' in recent years in increasing women's representation when asked whether the branch should act as a 'north star' to its federal counterpart. 'I'm not going to advise the federal branch whether or not they should have quotas, that's a matter for the feds, but in NSW our female representation in parliament has improved dramatically in recent years. 'Women now represent 45 per cent of our frontbench, they represent 45 per cent of our party room. We can always do better, but we have made great strides in getting female representation in the last few years.' Mr Speakman also praised the party's investment in young people. 'We've got eight MPs who are under 40,' he said. 'About half of those are under 35. Labor have no MPs under 35 at all. 'It's important that young people have a seat at the table as well. 'If their voice is unheard at the table, often they are overlooked.' The Liberal Party has faced immense scrutiny over the party's relationship with women following the 2025 federal election. Labor seized on multiple scandals during the campaign, including claims then opposition leader Peter Dutton was out of touch with women due to his plans to reform work-from-home rights and position on women in the military. Ms Ley said she was determined to get more women into the Liberal Party ranks and pushed back against condemnation of gender quotas from Liberal leadership rival Angus Taylor and former prime minister Tony Abbott.
The Guardian
24-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
NSW political staffers to appear at Durl caravan plot inquiry after being threatened with arrest warrants
Five staffers from the offices of the NSW premier, Chris Minns, and the police minister, Yasmin Catley, have agreed to appear before a parliamentary inquiry into the Dural caravan 'fake terrorism plot' after they were threatened with arrest for failing to attend last week. A senior staff member for the premier confirmed on Wednesday that they had been told by the president of the NSW Legislative Council, Ben Franklin, that he was planning to seek arrest warrants. Franklin had sought legal advice from Bret Walker SC about his powers to seek the warrants after the staffers defied summonses to appear at the upper house inquiry. They have now 'voluntarily' agreed to appear on Friday. The inquiry – launched with the support of the Coalition, the Greens and crossbench MLCs – is examining the handling of information about the caravan plot amid concerns parliament may have been 'misled' before controversial laws aimed at curbing antisemitism were rushed through parliament. In January, after it was announced that the caravan had been found, Minns said it had the potential to be a 'mass casualty event'. But in March, the Australian federal police revealed they believed it was a 'con job' by organised crime figures seeking to divert police resources and influence prosecutions. The premier and the police minister refused to appear at the inquiry before the committee sought the appearance of their staffers. Greens MP Sue Higginson, who is a member of the inquiry, also confirmed on Wednesday the political staffers would appear to give evidence on Friday. The standoff had been sparked by the refusal of Minns and Catley to appear. Ministers from the lower house cannot be required to appear before an inquiry of the upper house. Higginson said the staffers' decision to ignore the summonses 'put us all in a very difficult position'. 'We believe, as a committee … that these individuals hold information that could genuinely assist us in exercising our forensic capacity,' she told ABC radio. 'The lesson here is the parliamentary powers are strong powers. They're important powers. No one is above the law and don't challenge these powers.' Higginson was asked on Wednesday if she thought the government had misled parliament before the hate speech and places of worship laws were passed. 'There was absolutely knowledge held by some and not presented to the parliament to assist us in understanding the full picture,' she said. 'This is a democracy, and how we pass laws is a very important matter for everyone.' - Additional reporting by Jordyn Beazley
The Guardian
17-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Victorian ocotogenerians dumped from committee running NSW Liberal party but federal intervention continues
The former New South Wales premier Nick Greiner will chair a new committee in charge of the state Liberal division after a federal takeover was extended for nine months. The Liberal party's federal executive voted on Tuesday to install the new body, which will replace a three-person panel announced in September 2024 following a council elections bungle. Two former committee members – Victorian Liberal octogenerians Alan Stockdale and Richard Alston – have been dumped but the third former member, ex-NSW state MP Peta Seaton, will serve on Griener's new seven-person panel. The other members are Jane Buncle, Mark Baillie, Peter O'Hanlon, James Owen and Berenice Walker. The federal executive on Tuesday also signed off on who would lead two separate reviews following the May election – one standard post-election review and another deeper dive into the future of the party. The Liberal party's peak administrative body announced the intervention into the NSW branch last year after the local government election nominations fiasco, installing an administrative committee to run the division for 10 months. Stockdale, Alston and Seaton were charged with reviewing the party's constitution, overhauling the administrative machinery and helping to conduct the federal election campaign. The committee's term was due to expire on 30 June, creating an early test for the new federal Liberal leader, Sussan Ley, as the competing factions in her home state wrangled over the division's future. The federal executive had the option of extending the three-person committee's term or ending the intervention and handing control back to the NSW executive. But a third option emerged in recent weeks, in which a federal-backed committee would remain, but the current members would be replaced with NSW figures. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion The internal push to replace the committee members gathered momentum after 80-year-old Stockdale said Liberal women were 'sufficiently assertive' and perhaps male candidates needed a leg up. The new seven-member committee will be in place until the end of March 2026. The Liberals went backwards in NSW at the 3 May federal election, losing Bradfield, Banks and Hughes and failing to win any of its target seats. It contributed to the worst result in the Liberal party's 80-year history, with the Coalition reduced to just 43 lower house seats in the next parliament.
The Guardian
16-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Fate of NSW Liberal party to be decided at crunch meeting after federal takeover
The fate of the New South Wales Liberal party will be decided at a crunch meeting on Tuesday, where the party's federal executive will weigh up whether to end or extend its control over the division. The federal Liberal party forcibly took over the NSW division in September last year after the NSW branch failed to lodge nominations for 140 candidates in 16 councils before the local government elections. A committee was appointed to replace its state executive for a period of 10 months. On Tuesday, the Liberal party federal executive will decide the next steps for new Liberal leader Sussan Ley's home state division in one of her first major challenges. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email In the lead-up to the meeting, a small NSW-focused committee remaining in control of the state branch has been firming as the most likely outcome. That would mean replacing the three-person committee backed by Peter Dutton and supported by Tony Abbott. The administrative committee – whose term runs out on June 30 – ignited a internal furore after one of the members, Alan Stockdale, said Liberal women were 'sufficiently assertive' and perhaps men needed a leg up. The federal executive is also expected to agree to launch two separate reviews after the party's worst election defeat in its 80-year history – a conventional post-election inquiry and a broader probe into the party. Arthur Sinodinos is expected to be among the senior party figures to lead the campaign review, although Guardian Australia understands the former Liberal minister, staffer and US ambassador has yet to be formally approached for the task. John Howard-era cabinet minister and former rightwing power broker Nick Minchin was another name that was floated. The Queensland senator, James McGrath, is the frontrunner to lead the deeper dive into the party, according to multiple Liberal sources. The federal intervention has rankled all three factions in NSW – the moderates, the centre-right and the right – and all are perturbed with the lack of progress and consultation. A three-person committee made up of Victorian party figures Stockdale and Richard Alston and former NSW state MP Peta Seaton was installed to manage the branch, including reviewing the party's constitution, overhauling the administrative machinery and helping to conduct the federal election campaign. As a decision on the future of the intervention neared, a compromise in which the federal executive agreed to continue with a committee but install more NSW members has garnered a level of support across the factions. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion The most likely shape of the new committee would be an elder statesperson from NSW as the chair – and the three remaining vice-presidents from the NSW state executive. 'It's very much a Speakman-Ley proposal,' said one senior Liberal, referring to Ley and the NSW opposition leader, Mark Speakman. 'They have been working very closely together,' he said. This option would have the advantage of being more acceptable to the NSW party members because local figures would be in control. Ley would not comment before Tuesday's meeting but sources close to the Liberal leader disputed suggestions she was working with any faction on a particular model. The compromise is not certain to succeed as it requires 75% support from the 22-strong federal executive, which is compromised of Ley's federal parliamentary leadership team, state division presidents and federal branch officials. 'We're about two-thirds there,' said one insider, noting that most of the state representatives on the federal executive were instinctively likely to favour more state control. If the vote for either the old or the compromise committee does not achieve 75%, the control of the NSW division will automatically revert to the NSW state executive.
The Guardian
05-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Moderate Liberals say the party has a choice – be a far-right rump run by octogenarians or move to the centre
The latest extraordinary chapter in the saga involving the NSW division of the Liberal party underscores how much work they have to do before again being considered a viable alternative government. With the loss of Bradfield, the Liberals have relinquished all federal representation in their former heartland of Sydney's north shore. The alarm bells should be deafening. Instead, the party is dealing with the latest crisis following Alan Stockdale's comments about 'assertive women' in the party. Stockdale is a member of the troika installed to run the NSW branch by the federal Liberals after the 2024 council elections farce. In a Zoom call this week, Stockdale sought to convince Liberal women that the federal takeover should be extended, effectively keeping the division in a state of administration, rather than being run by members. In his pitch to the NSW Liberal Women's Council, Stockdale said that Liberal women were 'sufficiently assertive' and he suggested the party might need to consider quotas for men. 'Stockdale thought he was making a joke, but we are facing an existential crisis in the Liberal party – it's about the future of our party,' one NSW Liberal woman told Guardian Australia on Thursday. 'It was received with white hot anger by everyone.' The former federal Liberal leader Peter Dutton and the federal executive appointed Stockdale, a former Victorian MP in his 80s, to run the NSW division along with ex-Victorian senator Richard Alston, also in his 80s, and former NSW MP Peta Seaton. It came after the NSW division spectacularly failed to nominate 144 candidates for the local government elections last year. That monumental stuff-up led Dutton to argue that with a federal election fast approaching, a takeover was needed until 30 June 2025. An extension of that timeline has become the latest battleground between the hard Right of the party, personified by former prime minister Tony Abbott, and the moderates who have the numbers in NSW. The outrage over Stockdale's comment is palpable. 'There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman, in fact, I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal party,' the federal Liberal leader, Sussan Ley, said in a statement on Thursday. 'The Liberal party must reflect, respect and represent modern Australia and that means recognising the strength, merit and leadership of the women in our ranks.' The NSW opposition leader, Mark Speakman, avoided directly criticising Stockdale but said he 'wanted more assertive women, not fewer assertive women' in the party. He said 45% of his frontbench were women MPs and he argued the party needed to reflect the demographics of NSW – a not-so-subtle dig at the ageing and shrinking membership of the Liberals. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion The NSW Liberal party membership has dwindled to between 8,000 and 10,000. The former NSW treasurer Matt Kean, one of the most outspoken moderates in NSW, said the only person supporting the ongoing intervention was Abbott. 'This is a battle for the soul of the Liberal party: whether we become a far-right rump run by octogenarians or whether we become a centrist election-winning party again,' Kean said. Much now depends on Ley, but the Right of the party has severely damaged its cause – and provided fodder for Labor. 'I must say … the Liberal party have lost their way,' the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, told reporters on Thursday. 'People just shake their heads. There are more women in the Labor caucus … whose first name begins in A, literally, than there are Liberals and National women on the floor of the House of Representatives. That says it all.' Anne Davies is Guardian Australia's NSW state correspondent.
