Senior Liberals accused of plotting new seat boundaries
With the NSW Electoral Commission looking to change MPs’ seat boundaries, anxiety levels are running high, sending senior Liberals to an ultra-discreet venue to plot their next moves.
NSW
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It’s a new sophisticated Italian diner in the top end of town established by the family that founded the fabled Machiavelli Ristorante and run by the ultra-discreet Paola Toppi.
And just like Machiavelli, Toppi Martin Place is already the new home for plotting pollies.
On June 4 a Macquarie Street operative spotted state Transport Minister Andrew Constance and former Arts Minister Don Harwin deep in conversation together with some “faceless” followers. The name “Barilaro” was overheard “more than half a dozen times”.
Was Constance recounting the Eden-Monaro debacle where both he and Barra toyed with the idea of running for Canberra only to bail, causing Gladys Berejiklian to shop around the Transport portfolio to two senior ministers only to have to withdraw the offers?
No, the topic was much juicier: the upcoming redistribution that has MPs across the state quaking in fear of losing vital votes.
Harwin is the Premier’s representative for the Liberal Party submission to the NSW State Electoral Commission.
He’s allegedly pushing to take out “about 8000 votes” from the southern end of Barilaro’s National seat of Monaro, depositing them instead in Constance’s Liberal seat of Bega. While making Bega a safer Liberal seat, the move would make Monaro even more marginal.
But wait, there’s more.
There’s talk of moving the area of Nerriga out of Barra’s seat, too — which would be awkward given it’s home to Barra’s farm.
Could the Liberals really be trying to “f. k” Barra over as our operative suggests? Harwin gave us a firm “no comment”.
LABOR LEAKS
Labor MPs reeling from this week’s branch-stacking brouhaha have been scrambling to sign up to encrypted messaging app Signal, which wipes texts after they’re read and prohibits screenshotting.
Too late for power player Anthony Byrne, whose leaked thoughts about ex-leader Bill Shorten (“He makes me sick to my stomach”) could have used a little encryption. Odd, given Byrne’s expertise as deputy chair of Parliament’s intelligence and security committee.
COUNTRY COUSINS
Nationals Eden-Monaro candidate Trevor Hicks faced the punters last Saturday at the Royal Hotel, Adelong — but some of the questions were frostier than the night air. One elegant lady demanded why the former independent councillor only weeks earlier signed up to the Nats. Fortunately Barnaby Joyce was on hand to offer some soothing remarks — and the lady happened to be Joyce’s cousin. “That’s what we like — cousins come up with the tough ones,” Joyce said.
SUPER SARAH
Former Rudd, Gillard and Shorten staffer Sarah Adams is the new public affairs boss at Australia's largest super fund, in charge of strategy, brand and reputation. She should get a big pay rise: several of her new AustralianSuper colleagues take home $1 million-plus a year.
PARTY PLOTTING
A well-placed NSW Nationals source says a group of “left-leaning” Nats are plotting to move on party chair Andrew Fraser in a bid for greater control over preselections.
While Fraser, a veteran in the game, is unaligned, the left-leaners believe their ambitions are being stymied. It is understood the agitators include at least two MPs, a senior party official and an industry leader.
SHOOTERS WAR
The brawl between Police Minister David Elliott and Shooters MP Rob Borsak has reached a new low with a no-confidence motion in which Borsak slated Elliott for posting on Facebook that Greens who bag hardworking cops should be “victims of crime”.
Elliott’s second post suggested he’d pardon any police fines in exchange for a donation to his brother-in-law’s favourite charity.
Borsak withdrew the motion after learning the charity was the Cancer Council. Elliott’s wife and mother-in-law have recently battled breast cancer.
To help raise funds for charity, Elliott’s brother-in-law shaved his head for the cause. Borsak told us it wasn’t his intention to cause Elliott’s family harm. This won’t be the last of it.
Got some sauce? Contact linda.silmalis@news.com.au or annika.smethurst@news.com.au
Originally published as Senior Liberals accused of plotting new seat boundaries