While her intense desire to make sure she is No. 1 on the next senate ticket explains some of Michaelia Cash’s activity, there’s more to her behaviour than that

To some of her colleagues, the way WA Senator Michaelia Cash is behaving is reminiscent of the way another senator behaved the last time they were in opposition.

For someone who in the last parliament was about as low impact as it is possible for an opposition frontbencher to be, Michaelia Cash sure is up and about.

Before last May, the Western Australian Senator held the jobs of shadow minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and Attorney-General during which time she failed completely to either damage or deter her opponents from anything they wanted to do.

True, from time to time she popped up on building industry corruption, but her contributions on this subject were undermined more than somewhat by the fact that for at least some of the time the outrages were occurring when Cash herself was the responsible minister.

Opposition frontbencher Michaelia Cash sure is up and about. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Since she was relieved of these responsibilities, however, Cash has been hard to ignore.

Last week she gave a passionate speech in the Senate in defence of her colleague Jacinta Nampijinpa Price over her stance against the acknowledgments of the traditional owners.

She also made clear to The Australian she was backing motions at the WA Liberal State Council demanding welcome-to-countries be stripped of official status and that only Australian and state flags be used at official government events.

Now when a previously somnolent Liberal senator suddenly starts going like Rocket Racer on the elephant juice there’s almost invariably a one-word explanation: preselection.

But Cash’s parliamentary colleagues say that while her intense desire to make sure she is No. 1 on the next senate ticket explains some of this activity, there’s more to her behaviour than that.

As The Australian pointed out, Cash is the “highest-ranking Liberal woman MP behind Sussan Ley” and her push to ditch welcome-to-country ceremonies and Aboriginal flags from official events, puts her “at odds with the Opposition Leader on Indigenous symbolism”.

Much more important than the question of how many flags should be in the background or Indigenous hello ceremonies is, of course, the Coalition’s position on net zero.

Last week we saw the former Nat enemies Barnaby Joyce and Michael McCormack join together to denounce the policy which the Coalition has now taken to two elections.

McCormack even went so far to suggest that it would be possible for the Liberals and Nationals to take different emissions positions to the next election, which is about as nuts an idea as I have ever heard.

Former enemies Barnaby Joyce and Michael McCormack have struck up an alliance. Picture: Martin Ollman

There are plenty of things they could agree to disagree about and still get elected – up to and including whether we should be a monarchy or republic – but this just isn’t one of them.

Naturally, the question everyone wanted answered when the McCormack-Joyce pact was announced was is this just Nationals business or are there Liberals using the bushies to make trouble for Ley?

Because while the move can be explained by many things, from principle to their shared hatred for David Littleproud, it was hard not wonder if the stoush was being egged on by those who want to make life hard for the opposition leader.

It should be said clearly, however, that whatever Cash is up to – as well as those who might or might not have been revving up the two old steers – it does not include Angus Taylor, who his friends say has absolutely no interest in making trouble at the moment.

To some of her colleagues, the way the WA Senator is behaving is reminiscent of the way another senator behaved the last time they were in opposition.

Nick Minchin did everything he could to make Malcolm Turnbull’s life hell in the 15 months he was Liberal leader between September 2008 and December 2009.

In the end, of course, Turnbull was replaced by Tony Abbott and the rest is history.

The fear among some of the current crop of MPs is that the Right of the party thinks that history can be brought to repeat itself.

It goes without saying, however, that the world was a very different place in 2013.

The idea you could stick a finger up to climate change-concerned voters in 2025 and hope to win – let alone in 2028 when the electorate will be even more Gen Z voters – is as nuts as the idea the Nats and Libs can agree to disagree on it.

Just look at the map.

Prior to the 2022 election it was possible for Liberals to dream they could swap what we now think of teal land for the grittier more dinky di Aussies in the suburbs and regions.

You could just about hold on to this dream going into 2025.

But at the next election it is clear the Coalition isn’t going to need a climate change story to win back rich places like Kooyong or Warringah; they’re going to need one if they are going to win back middle suburbs like Menzies, Aston and Deakin.

Meanwhile, parliament resumes on Monday and Albo couldn’t be happier.

Originally published as While her intense desire to make sure she is No. 1 on the next senate ticket explains some of Michaelia Cash’s activity, there’s more to her behaviour than that