Henskens keeps his job after Libs’ late night crisis talks

Alister Henskens has kept his job after Liberal Leader Mark Speakman held crisis talks on Thursday, but allies of the shadow Attorney General say the entire saga is “overblown”.

• Speakman ‘all foam, no beer’

Alister Henskens has kept his job after Liberal Leader Mark Speakman held crisis talks on Thursday, but allies of the shadow Attorney General say the entire saga is “overblown”.

In a statement released by Mr Speakman’s office late on Thursday night, Mr Henskens said that all members of the shadow cabinet must “refrain” from publicly disagreeing with the leader.

Earlier the Liberal frontbencher has also called on his colleagues to stop leaking information against their leader — while conceding that he told 2GB radio host Ray Hadley that he disagreed with Mr Speakman.

Ku-ring-gai MP Alister Henskens. Picture: Simon Bullard

“In a text message which was read out on radio this morning, I did not convey, nor did I intend to convey that Mark Speakman was dishonest,” a written statement released by Mr Speakman’s office on Mr Henskens’ behalf late on Thursday night said.

“Rather I disagreed with Mark’s honestly held opinion of responsibility for the local government failure by head office.

“It is incumbent on all Liberal MPs to concentrate on holding the Minns Labor government to account, which requires teamwork and loyalty. This requires that, going forward, every member of Shadow Cabinet refrain from speaking or backgrounding against decisions or actions of the Leader, the Shadow Cabinet, the Liberal Party Room, or the Coalition Joint Party Room.”

Mr Speakman, who had spent hours on Thursday evening locked away in crisis talks with his closest confidants discussing Mr Henskens’ future, said he welcomed the statement.

Shadow Attorney-General Mr Henskens had sent text message to radio presenter Ray Hadley saying the Opposition Leader’s explanation about the council nominations debacle “couldn’t be further from the truth”.

NSW Liberal leader Mark Speakman. Picture: Max Mason-Hubers

Reading Mr Henskens’ alleged messages on air, Mr Hadley claimed the Liberal frontbencher had texted him on Monday to express his dismay over the Liberal Party’s council nominations fiasco, which he blamed on Mr Harwin.

NSW Liberal state director Richard Shields was sacked by the party’s State Executive for the debacle, in which the nomination forms of 140 endorsed council candidates were not lodged.

Mr Speakman has also been under pressure to instruct party officials to remove Mr Harwin, but the Liberal leader has to date stood by the party president, earlier declaring how the moderate powerbroker could be criticised for lateness in the endorsement of candidates, but that the process of lodging electronic nominations was “entirely separate”.

Mr Shields has said previously Mr Harwin volunteered to run the local government nomination process.

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