Come out and be seen, key Liberal tells leader’s rivals

Zac de Silva and Grace Crivellaro |

Pressure is growing on Angus Taylor to act if he intends to challenge for the Liberal leadership.
Pressure is growing on Angus Taylor to act if he intends to challenge for the Liberal leadership.

Backers of Opposition Leader Sussan Ley are daring her rivals to come into the open ahead of a potential challenge from fellow Liberal Angus Taylor.

The conservative-backed leadership aspirant is expected to step down from the shadow ministry on Thursday to challenge Ms Ley for her job.

Weeks of furious speculation about the Liberal party’s future have been driven by a series of dire poll results, which the party leader’s critics say show the need for change at the top.

Angus Taylor
Angus Taylor is expected to resign from shadow cabinet to challenge for Sussan Ley’s position. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

Moderate senator Andrew Bragg said any frontbenchers planning a leadership challenge needed to step down and make their positions clear.

“I think that would be the honourable thing to do,” he told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday.

Party conventions require anyone in a leadership role or the shadow ministry to step down from their portfolio before launching a challenge.

Once Mr Taylor does so, he’ll be able to openly canvass for votes among his colleagues.

Andrew Bragg
Andrew Bragg says the party needs to get on with forming policies, not infighting. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

Mr Taylor will also need to call for a special party-room meeting later in the week so a vote can be held, but Senator Bragg said a petition signed by a majority of Liberal members was needed for that to happen.

“If people want to achieve particular outcomes, they should have the guts to put their name to it,” he said.

“We’re paid to develop alternative policies, we’re not paid to have secret meetings.”

Fellow moderate Julian Leeser said he had “unequivocal support” for Ms Ley and argued she should be allowed to continue in the job.

Asked if she had enough support to win a spill, Mr Leeser said he was “not about counting the numbers” and was focused on holding the government to account.

Liberal MP Julian Leeser (file image)
Liberal MP Julian Leeser says Sussan Ley should be allowed to do her job. (Steven Markham/AAP PHOTOS)

Conservative MP Phil Thompson said the Liberals were in a “death spiral”, pointing to recent opinion polls which show the coalition trailing One Nation in voter support.

In 2018, a petition was circulated to call for a party-room meeting to resolve the leadership, which led to former Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull being toppled by Scott Morrison.

Mr Taylor’s camp claims he has the numbers to win a spill, but Ms Ley’s backers dispute this.

Insiders agree whoever wins, the vote is likely to be very tight.

AAP