George Christensen to stay with Liberal-National Party amid rumours Cory Bernardi will defect
CORY Bernardi has been urged to remember the ‘sacred pledge’ he made to the Liberal Party as rumours abound about his intention to jump ship.
HEALTH Minister Greg Hunt has reminded Cory Bernardi of the allegiance he owes to the Liberal Party, amid rumours the South Australian Senator is readying to set out on his own.
Mr Hunt was asked about the burning issue when he appeared on ABC TV’s 7.30.
“I hope that each and every person who committed to the Liberal Party and through that, committed to the voters honours that pledge,” he told host Leigh Sales.
“It is a sacred pledge that we all undertake when we go to the electorate in an election to carry out our promises, both in terms of our policies, but also our allegiance. I think that is very important for each of us.
“I won’t discuss individuals, but it is part of the deep belief that we can go through with being inside a movement with a grand tradition and a grand history of improving Australian lives and continue to improve Australian lives and it is the best place to be.”
Mr Hunt said he was convinced Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was the person to lead the Liberal Party forward.
“I believe deeply in the work and the mission and the task of the Liberal Party
and the Coalition,” he said.
“I believe deeply in the work that Malcolm Turnbull is doing and delivering in particular in terms of taking the battle on cost of living that affects people’s lives and allows us to give them a lower trajectory. On electricity prices and more opportunities of a job and more opportunity at national security and, because of that, then you can also deliver the additional health services. This is a big task.”
Mr Hunt’s comments came after One Nation leader Pauline Hanson said she believed Mr Bernardi would claim part of her growing support base if he splits from the Liberal Party.
Senator Hanson doesn’t appear too worried though as the South Australian Senator’s position aligns with One Nation on many issues.
And it would add one more vote to the crossbench.
“Whatever Cory decides — and we have a democracy in Australia and people can decide where they want to go, and whether people get behind Cory Bernardi or not — good luck to him,” Senator Hanson said when speaking to the Nine Network’s Today Show this morning.
“We are on the same lines with a lot of the policies and issue.
“It will split the conservative vote but I’ll put my policies there and hopefully, I’ve got no problems with working with Cory.”
Speculation that Senator Bernardi could split from the Liberals to form his own party — the Australian Conservatives — has mounted over the past few months.
Columnist Andrew Bolt reported Senator Bernardi could defect from the Liberals this week, while other sources said the move could happen within the next two days.
Senator Bernardi reportedly told his staff of his decision to leave the Liberal Party in the past few days.
It’s understood he will join the crossbench as an independent senator for South Australia.
Nationals MP George Christensen indicated last December he was unhappy with the Coalition’s direction, writing on social media there could come a time when it was no longer tenable to remain inside the tent.
But Mr Christensen told media today he was loyal to Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce and would remain with the government “as long as the government holds true to the values of the people that put us there”.
The Queensland MP said any split by Senator Bernardi would send a strong message to the Coalition to give more weight to conservative principles.
“If there’s a move away, I suppose it sends a signal to the leadership that we cannot ... abandon conservative causes, conservative principles and conservative policies,” he told reporters in Canberra.
“We’ve got to re-embrace them, reconnect with that part of our core constituency, and just do the job that we were elected to do and I think that, if we did that, there wouldn’t be breakaways.”
Mr Christensen said it would be a shame if Senator Bernardi left the party as he was untapped talent on the backbench.
Senator Bernardi and Mr Christensen will both speak at a public talk in Melbourne this Friday on defending freedom of speech, run by conservative group Halal Choices.
BERNARDI FORESHADOWS ‘TESTING YEAR’ FOR GOVERNMENT
In a blog post last week, Senator Bernardi said it would be a “testing year” for both the Government and Opposition.
The wideranging post titled “time to get back on track” Senator Bernardi covered economic policy, education and energy prices.
“The myriad examples of how the dead hand of government intervention often creates more problems than it solves is easy to see for those willing to open their eyes to the challenges ahead,” he said.
“It’s time we confronted those challenges, not by crying for more government intervention, tariffs, protection or subsidies, but by applying proven economic principles and actions.
“Unfortunately there are too few in our body politic willing to take the path less travelled — a trustworthy track that has fallen out of use.
“For the sake of our nation, we must get back on track.”
The news comes amid more dire polling numbers for the Prime Minister, with the Liberal primary vote slumping to 32 per cent.
MORE: Bernardi set to ‘split from Coalition’ for Trump-inspired movement
Earlier this month, Bernardi updated his social media accounts, removing almost every reference to the Liberal Party.
He also signalled a “massive” year for the Australian Conservatives in a blog post in December after operating since mid-2016 with “modest staff numbers and a bare bones website”.
“This is all set to change in 2017,” the post said.
“Our new state-of-the-art website is almost ready to go, and we will be launching it early next year, along with a number of important campaigns.”
Senator Bernardi loudly praised President Donald Trump’s election win in November, claiming Australian politicians were not doing enough to listen to the average voter.
He spilt with his party’s line on a number of key issues last year and loudly opposed any return to an energy policy that included an emissions trading scheme, a move that prompted the Prime Minister to rule out any form of carbon tax within 24 hours.
It’s understood Senator Bernardi may have the backing of Australia’s richest woman Gina Rinehart, if he does break away from the Liberals.
The pair met key members of President Trump’s campaign team in Washington in November, including former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and campaign manager Kellyanne Conway.
It’s understood Senator Bernardi was also invited on a luxury cruise by Ms Rinehart over summer.
Senator Bernardi has been largely silent on speculation of a split over the summer and declined to comment when News Corp contacted his office this morning.
The senator has flown into Canberra ahead of the first sitting week of 2017, which begins tomorrow.
In December, he spoke out when former Prime Minister Tony Abbott went on radio urging his conservative colleagues to stay with the Liberal Party.
“I am very anxious about the possibility of a new conservative party because the absolute lesson of Australian history is that division on the conservative side of politics just helps Labor,” Mr Abbott had told Sydney radio station 2GB.
Senator Bernardi hit back saying the only person talking up division in the Liberal Party was Mr Abbott.
Liberal frontbencher Simon Birmingham told reporters in Canberra this morning he didn’t expect Senator Bernardi would break away from the party.
“Every comment I’ve ever seen Cory make, including over recent months, has been about the importance of Liberals, Nationals, conservatives — all those in the right of centre — working together and working as a strong coalition, and I’m confident that Cory will stand by his words,” Senator Birmingham said.
Treasurer Scott Morrison said the decision was “a matter for Cory Bernardi”.
“What he chooses to do is for him to decide and for others to imply or suggest what he might or might not do or the reasons for it, only Senator Bernardi can answer those questions,” he told ABC News.
Opposition leader Bill Shorten has seized on the reports saying Labor will focus on the jobs of Australians while the Government focuses on keeping their own jobs.
Speaking after the Labor Party’s first meeting of the year, Mr Shorten said the public didn’t care if the Coalition was dealing with internal politics.
“This week as we resume and we talk about our important issues, they being Medicare, housing affordability and of course jobs, we see the government in turmoil,” he told reporters in Canberra.
“Quite frankly, Labor and the people of Australia don’t care what goes on down the hallway.
“Whether or not Cory Bernardi stays or goes, whether or not Malcolm goes, whether or not Tony comes back or Julie Bishop finally gets a run, that isn’t what’s going to help people be able to pay for their first house, it doesn’t help people find a job or keep a job, it certainly doesn’t help save Medicare.”
Originally published as George Christensen to stay with Liberal-National Party amid rumours Cory Bernardi will defect