MEMBER for Farrer Sussan Ley has officially put her hand up to contest the leadership of the Liberal Party.
First elected in 2001, Ms Ley has called for a change in direction and fresh leadership approach, after last Saturday’s significant election defeat to Labor demonstrated to her that the Liberal Party “got it wrong”.
“The Liberal Party needs to listen to the Australian people and meet them where they are,” she said. We need to understand their aspirations.
“We need to build a new economic narrative. We need new policy offerings that show Australians we can help them and their families get ahead.
“We need to listen and we need to change. The Liberal Party must respect modern Australia, reflect modern Australia and represent modern Australia.
“Many Australians, including women and younger Australians, feel neglected by the Liberal Party.
“We must rebuild trust with all sections of Australian society and my election as Leader of the Liberal Party would send a very strong signal that we understand things need to be done differently.”
She is pitted against shadow treasurer Angus Taylor in the tussle for party leadership, and a vote will take place on Tuesday.
Other touted contestants including Andrew Hastie and Dan Tehan have since ruled themselves out of the contest.
“We have an enormous depth of talent in our party room and I want to draw on all of it over the next three years,” Ms Ley said.
“We will carefully develop policies through our robust party room processes, supported by our broader membership, to deliver better outcomes for all Australians.
“Under my leadership, these policies will always be guided by the timeless values which were the foundation of Menzies’ Liberal Party.”
Ms Ley managed to shake off independent challenger Michelle Milthorpe to retain the seat of Farrer, but suffered a swing against her.
The initial ballot count was abandoned, as Ms Milthorpe had garnered more votes than the Labor candidate, Glen Hyde.
Ms Milthorpe said the Australian Electoral Commission could have avoided abandoning count if it had chosen to take a two-candidate-preferred (2CP) approach rather than a two-party-preferred (2PP) approach.
“It meant that the live results didn’t give a clear picture of the actual contest,” she said.
“I’d like to see more consistency and clarity around how independent candidates are represented in the count, it helps voters better understand what’s really happening.”
Ms Milthorpe said she was open to standing for the seat of Farrer again, though no firm decision had yet been made.
“This campaign might be over, but I’m not going anywhere. I’ll take some time to reflect, but I will always stand up for Farrer. We deserve better, and I’m here to help us get there.”
