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The Australian
10-08-2025
- Politics
- The Australian
Which Australian suburbs have the strongest support for teal independents?
From Avalon to Bondi, Hawthorn to Elsternwick, Subiaco to Shenton Park: these are the Liberals' one-time stronghold zones that have abandoned their blue-ribbon traditions, embracing a teal conversion that started as a protest and has become an entrenched movement winning over the majority of voters in some hotspots. At the May 3 election, more than half of all voters in the most teal-leaning suburbs cast a primary vote for their independent MP. Many were so disillusioned with a party that once was guaranteed to claim the lion's share of ballot paper '1's, they directed their preferences into the red corner of their ballot paper instead of the Liberals. Four booths in Sydney – Avalon Beach in Sophie Scamps' Mackellar on the northern beaches and Paddington North, Darlinghurst East and Bondi Beach East in Allegra Spender's eastern suburbs seat of Wentworth – led the way in ensuring their respective teal MP was re-elected with an increased majority, tallying primary vote totals above 50 per cent. At another 88 booths across the six lower-house seats won by teals – including Warringah and Bradfield in Sydney, Kooyong in Melbourne and Curtin in Perth – the independent's primary vote was between 40 and 50 per cent. Even in Goldstein, where former MP Zoe Daniel was narrowly ousted by Liberal returnee Tim Wilson, several teal-leaning communities still pushed Daniel past 40 per cent of primary votes. In the beachside enclave of Avalon – whose three booths finished in the top 11 teal-voting locations nationwide – disillusionment towards the major parties, a strong focus on community issues and progressive social values underpinned Dr Scamps' re-election. Residents Giles Belcher and Alex Carr said they supported Dr Scamps because she hadn't done 'anything wrong', as opposed to the major parties. '(Mackellar) was a Liberal stronghold for years but no one ever did anything … we were just ignored, so it was a protest vote to start with,' Mr Belcher said. '(Dr Scamps) didn't do anything wrong. The Liberals are still a mess so she got in again. 'I think she advocated for the area relatively well … I'm not sure I could point to any one thing that she actually got done, but at least she was a voice, whereas I don't think there was one before.' Mr Carr said the teal vote benefited from an electorate that was an 'unusual blend of being quite environmentally upstanding and community-based, as well as relatively well off' – something, he said, the Labor and Liberal parties respectively neglected. 'You can be very liberal in certain points of view and then still focus on the economics of the world … the perception is (the teals) sit in that centrist place quite nicely.' He said the electorate had not turned anti-Liberal but rather found an alternative that spoke to the community's position better. 'It comes down to the leadership – so therefore if I buy the leadership and the vision of the Liberal Party and then the person on the ground is right, then yeah, I don't think anyone is averse to the Liberal Party,' Mr Carr said. 'It's OK to want your pocket full but believe in environmental change. They seem to be able to hit that mark quite well, whereas I think the other parties have missed that point.' Mr Belcher also opened the door to a Liberal return. 'Leadership is key,' he said. 'If you had somebody with a good vision and the local person was right, I think people would vote for (Liberals) again. But without that, I don't think they have a chance.' Teal voter Ellie Rourke said Dr Scamps had 'done a lot to win the hearts and minds of us here' and that her trustworthiness bolstered her votes. For the Liberals to have any chance of winning back the electorate, they must regain trust and pick a better candidate. 'It's in the individual candidate, not necessarily the party's policies here … I think the Liberals have a lot of work to do across Australia to regain trust, and then within that we just need a better candidate,' Ms Rourke said. Judging by how many Avalon residents voted for the unsuccessful Liberal candidate, James Brown – the former son-in-law of ex-Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull – she's right. At the Avalon Beach booth just over 10 years ago, then Liberal MP Bronwyn Bishop won the support of 53 per cent of voters, slightly more than Dr Scamps at this election. On May 3, Mr Brown wasn't able to win even a quarter of the primary votes, finishing with 24.1 per cent. A similar pattern played out in other teal-aligned booths across the country. In Wentworth, Allegra Spender received 46.4 per cent of first preferences in Woollahra, while her Liberal opponent, Ro Knox, won 34.9 per cent – a far cry from the 69.3 per cent Mr Turnbull received at the 2013 election, before he became party leader. In Warringah, home to the original teal MP Zali Steggall, the former Olympic freestyle skier almost cracked half of the primary vote in Fairlight (49.5 per cent), while her Liberal opponent, Jaimee Rogers, managed just 28.1 per cent, well below the 52.1 per cent Tony Abbott received when he led the Coalition to power in 2013. And in Kooyong, Josh Frydenberg's 50.1 per cent of the vote at the Auburn Primary School in 2013 was well out of reach for Amelia Hamer, who barely reached 30 per cent, far behind the 46.8 per cent who gave their first preferences to teal MP Monique Ryan and helped her win one of the most intensely fought electorates of the 2025 election. In Bradfield, the Liberals have lodged a challenge against the result in which Nicolette Boele was declared the winner after a recount gave her a 26-vote victory, reversing the initial count that found Liberal candidate Gisele Kapterian had narrowly won. Whether the Liberals should pour resources into trying to regain the teal seats has been a source of debate within Coalition circles. Former leader Peter Dutton focused his attentions on outer-metropolitan seats before the 2025 election, barely setting foot in the teal seats across the five weeks of the campaign. After that approach failed spectacularly, with the Liberals losing a swag of outer-urban electorates including Mr Dutton's own seat, his replacement Sussan Ley declared winning back all lost seats, including those surrendered to the teals, would be a priority. In Avalon – a suburb named after the island from the legend of King Arthur where magic and mythical healing helped him recover from his battle wounds – no such forces look like helping Ms Ley's Liberals any time soon. Resident Jeremy Ing, who is a Liberal voter, said he was 'worried' Mackellar's future was teal. 'I don't see how we won't have a teal MP going forwards because the reality is you've got the Coalition standing against at least three parties because the Greens and Labor preference the teals,' Mr Ing said. His wife Susan, who voted for Labor, said any electorate with a strong teal representation was 'reflective of the disillusionment mainly with the Liberal Party'. 'People are fiscally conservative but socially want to see changes,' Ms Ing said. Asked for comment on the rise of the teals in one-time Liberal strongholds and the failure to win back any of the Sydney seats lost to the independents, a NSW Liberal Party spokesperson said the 2025 campaign would be subject to 'thorough analysis' in a review conducted by former politicians Pru Goward and Nick Minchin. Politics Home Affairs Tony Burke says Palestinian author Mona Zahed did not apply for a humanitarian visa, but instead had applied for an entertainment visa that she was not eligible for, resulting in her application not being cancelled on character grounds. Politics The two leaders addressed rising tensions in Gaza and growing Chinese assertiveness in the Pacific during high-level talks in Queenstown on Saturday.
The Guardian
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Accountability, robodebt and regional housing: Helen Haines unpacks it all
Tom McIlroy speaks to independent MP Helen Haines to talk through her ambitious agenda for the new parliamentary term, her sharp disappointment with the robodebt royal commission fallout, and what the government's response says about political accountability
The Independent
08-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Suspended Reform MP James McMurdock quits party after Covid loan questions
James McMurdock has said he will not return to Reform UK after resigning the whip over questions related to Covid loans, becoming the second MP to leave the party since the general election last year. The MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock 'removed the party whip from himself' last week, pending the outcome of an investigation relating to allegations around 'business propriety during the pandemic'. It comes after a Sunday Times investigation alleged two businesses connected to Mr McMurdock took out Covid -19 loans totalling £70,000 during the pandemic, one of which had no employees. On Tuesday, the MP said he 'had a chance to take specialist legal advice from an expert in the relevant field' since the loans came to light. Writing on social media site X, he added: 'In light of that advice, which is privileged and which I choose to keep private at this time, I have decided to continue my parliamentary career as an independent MP where I can focus 100 per cent on the interests of my constituents.' Mr McMurdock is the second Reform MP to leave the party following the departure of Rupert Lowe earlier this year, who now also sits as an independent. Mr Lowe was expelled from Reform in March amid allegations of bullying, which he has strongly denied. According to Companies House, Mr McMurdock is listed as the current director of Gym Live Health and Fitness Limited, and a former director of J A M Financial Limited, a position he resigned in 2021. Both firms are shown to have overdue accounts and confirmation statements, and both have an 'active proposal to strike off'. Over the weekend, Mr McMurdock insisted that 'all my business dealings had always been conducted fully within the law and in compliance with all regulations and that appropriately qualified professionals had reviewed all activity confirming the same'. He said he had asked for the Reform whip to be suspended temporarily as a 'precautionary measure'. Speaking to Reform councillors on Monday morning, Nigel Farage said 'how we behave matters', adding that he 'can't apologise' for the 2024 election vetting process because he was not involved in it. 'I came in, I inherited this situation where hundreds of candidates who stood in the last general election had not gone through a vetting process', he said, seeking to distance himself from the process. 'I said on July 5, the day after the election last year, that we would now professionalise. 'We put 1,630 candidates into the field on May 1, more than any other party with very, very few rows or arguments – so the vetting process worked for this year, I can't apologise for what happened before.' The Reform leader did not answer when asked whether the allegations faced by Mr McMurdock were an embarrassment for his party. 'Let's find out the truth, I know as much about this right now as you do,' said Mr Farage. Addressing Reform UK Kent County Council councillors on the steps inside County Hall, he said: 'Behaving with integrity is a responsibility upon all of you, although that doesn't mean you all have to become stuffed shirts or anything like that. 'You are holders of public office you are responsible and how we behave matters.'
Daily Mail
08-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
MP James McMurdock quits Reform PERMANENTLY after taking 'specialist legal advice' ahead of probe into Covid business loans worth £70,000
Former Reform MP James McMurdock said he was quitting the party for good today as he faces an investigation over Covid loans he took out during the pandemic. The MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock resigned the whip on Saturday, shortly before The Sunday Times published a story about loans worth £70,000 given to two businesses - one of which had no staff. He said at the time the decision to sit as an independent was temporary, pending the outcome of a Commons investigation. But this afternoon he took to X to say that after taking 'specialist legal advice from an expert in the relevant field' he would not be seeking to rejoin. He added: 'In light of that advice, which is privileged and which I choose to keep private at this time, I have decided to continue my parliamentary career as an independent MP where I can focus 100 per cent on the interests of my constituents.' It means that Nigel Farage 's party, which won five seats at the general election, now has just four MP, having lost two and gained one in the tumultuous year since. Mr McMurdock and Rupert Lowe have left to become independents, while Sarah Pochin won the Runcorn and Helsby by-election earlier this year. But this afternoon he took to X to say that after taking 'specialist legal advice from an expert in the relevant field' he would not be seeking to rejoin. McMurdock, 39, who was previously jailed for attacking an ex-girlfriend, was accused by the Sunday Times of taking out the maximum loan of £50,000 for his firm JAM Financial Limited, which had no employees and almost no assets until the pandemic. In order to qualify for a £50,000 loan from the government, companies had to have a turnover of more than £200,000. Documents on Companies House showed how the firm's 'current assets' jumped from just £125 in 2019 to £50,137 in 2020, the year of the loan. After receiving the money, McMurdock allegedly then resigned from the company and gave his shares to his mother. A second company, Gym Live Health and Fitness Limited, was a dormant company until the end of January in 2020 yet borrowed £20,000 during the pandemic, for which it would have had to have a turnover of £100,000. Neither company has filed accounts or annual corporate filings since the loans. Both companies were set to be struck from the register, meaning they would cease to exist - but this was paused by a complaint from a third party, thought to be in relation to the outstanding loans. McMurdock has also been accused by the paper of breaching parliamentary rules by failing to declare that he is a director of the Gym business on his register of interests. Mr McMurdock insisted when the Sunday Times news story broke that 'all my business dealings had always been conducted fully within the law and in compliance with all regulations and that appropriately qualified professionals had reviewed all activity confirming the same'. He said he had asked for the Reform whip to be suspended temporarily as a 'precautionary measure'.
The Independent
08-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
James McMurdock says he will not return to Reform UK after Covid loan questions
MP James McMurdock will not return to Reform UK after resigning the party whip over questions related to Covid loans, he has said. The MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock 'removed the party whip from himself' last week pending the outcome of an investigation relating to allegations around 'business propriety during the pandemic'. The Sunday Times published a story on Saturday which alleged two businesses connected to Mr McMurdock took out Covid-19 loans totalling £70,000 during the pandemic, one of which had no employees. On Tuesday, the MP said he 'had a chance to take specialist legal advice from an expert in the relevant field' since the loans came to light. Writing on social media site X, he added: 'In light of that advice, which is privileged and which I choose to keep private at this time, I have decided to continue my parliamentary career as an independent MP where I can focus 100% on the interests of my constituents.' According to Companies House, Mr McMurdock is listed as the current director of Gym Live Health and Fitness Limited, and a former director of J A M Financial Limited, a position he resigned in 2021. Both firms are shown to have overdue accounts and confirmation statements, and both have an 'active proposal to strike off'. Mr McMurdock insisted when the Sunday Times news story broke that 'all my business dealings had always been conducted fully within the law and in compliance with all regulations and that appropriately qualified professionals had reviewed all activity confirming the same'. He said he had asked for the Reform whip to be suspended temporarily as a 'precautionary measure'.
