Ley stalls on additional Nationals resignations, urges Coalition to stay intact
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More news: Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has scrambled to avoid the break up of the Coalition, declaring additional National resignations unnecessary and urging Nationals leader David Littleproud “not to walk away”.
In her second statement on Wednesday evening, Ley said no changes would be made to her frontbench “at this time” to give the junior Coalition partner “time to reconsider” its position.
Earlier, Littleproud wrote to Ley suggesting that the Nationals’ decision to vote against Labor’s hate speech laws was a collective choice, meaning all of the party's frontbenchers would resign.
But after accepting a trio of resignations from Nationals who voted agains the bill in the Senate, Ley rejected resignation letters from the additional eight lower house frontbenchers — including Littleproud.
“I and my Liberal leadership group have determined [that they] are unnecessary,” she said.
“The Liberal Party supports the Coalition arrangements because they deliver the most effective political alliance for good government. I note that in David’s letter, he has not indicated that the Nationals are leaving the Coalition.”
As developments moved quickly on Wednesday, Liberal sources told Capital Brief that Ley’s leadership was in danger.
One Liberal MP urged against a Coalition split, but said: “If the [Liberal] leader can't keep the Nationals in line, the leadership question answers itself”.
What they said: “No permanent changes will be made to the Shadow Ministry at this time, giving the National Party time to reconsider these offers of resignation,” Ley said.
Nationals launch mass frontbench resignation, Ley’s leadership in turmoil
The news: The Nationals have staged a mass resignation from the shadow cabinet, again leaving the Coalition agreement in tatters and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley’s future in turmoil.
The context: The remaining eight Nationals Party frontbenchers, including Nationals leader David Littleproud, quit the shadow ministry during a party room meeting on Wednesday evening.
In a sharply-worded statement on Wednesday, Ley accepted the resignation of three Nationals frontbenchers — Bridget McKenzie, Ross Cadell and Susan McDonald — for breaking cabinet solidarity by voting against her hate speech laws in the Senate.
Hours after the trio’s resignation was confirmed, all remaining members of the Nationals’ frontbench agreed to quit their positions.
Nationals frontbencher Pat Conaghan, confirming that he had sent Ley his formal resignations as shadow assistant treasurer and shadow minister for financial services, said: "While I and my National Party colleagues fully support the intent of the legislation, we do not support the rushed iteration that has been presented."
Under the Coalition agreement, frontbenchers from both parties are bound to vote in unison on positions agreed to by the shadow cabinet.
The move is set to escalate pressure on Ley, whose grip on the Liberal leadership is tenuous.
What they said: Conaghan said: “The Nationals’ party room concluded that more time is required to examine and test (Labor’s) bill. The Nationals’ party room made the decision as a collective to abstain in the house and oppose the bill in the Senate, tendering amendments agreed by the party that would provide better free speech protections for everyday Australians at that time."
“Unfortunately, these were voted down and National Party senators crossed the floor of parliament to vote ‘no’ accordingly.”
The sources: ABC, AFR, The Australian, Pat Conaghan Statement
