‘Out of the way, cowards’: Mark Speakman hits back at rumour-mongers

After a tumultuous week for the NSW Liberals, Opposition leader Mark Speakman has criticised “anonymous cowards” trying to destabilise his leadership, urging them to focus on holding the government to account.

Opposition leader Mark Speakman says it is time for the rumour mill to stop, while slapping down the “anonymous cowards” trying to destabilise his leadership.

Exclusive: Liberal leader Mark Speakman has slapped down the “anonymous cowards” attempting to destabilise his leadership, ­urging them to “get out of the way”.

He has also issued stern words to his parliamentary team, declaring that he expected everyone to be putting in the “hard yards” in holding the Minns government to account.

The comments follow a ­disastrous week for the NSW Liberals, with the shock resignation of Liberal MP Wendy Tuckerman from the frontbench over her party’s handling of a Labor electricity infrastructure bill and revelations MPs had held talks on the ­timing of a leadership change if one was to occur.

On Saturday, however, Mr Speakman ­declared his focus remained firmly on voters.

“To the people of NSW – my focus is on you and your needs, not the rumour mill from a few anonymous cowards who should get out of the way,” he said.

Liberal Party elder Nick Greiner says the Opposition must "grow up" and take risks on policy or face continued decline, as internal chaos engulfs the NSW branch.

Flagging a change in strategy, the NSW Opposition Leader also echoed the sentiment of party elder Nick Greiner who this week declared the need for Mr Speakman and federal leader Sussan Ley to “take some risks” in ­differentiating the party from its rivals to avoid a repeat of the disastrous federal election ­result.

“Nick Greiner hit the nail on the head – we must be bold,” Mr Speakman said. “We must be bold on cost of living, the biggest game in town.

“We were bold in government on infrastructure; we’ll be bold on infrastructure again, while Labor lets the pipeline dry up.

“We’re emphatically pro-housing; we’ll be bold on the housing crisis, while for all its bluster Labor sees housing completions go backwards. We’ll be bold on hospitals, while Labor lets waiting lists grow and services slip.”

As of this week, none of the prospective leadership candidates had a clear majority to roll the Cronulla MP, while the most likely consensus candidate, opposition health spokeswoman Kellie Sloane, does not want the job.

However, there has been an escalation in the pressure on Mr Speakman’s leadership with cross-factional talks about the timing of any possible leadership challenge and an agreement that, if one were to happen, it must be before the end of the year.

Mr Speakman said the Coalition had the “experience, the knowledge and the skill” to turn the state around, and that he and his office were committed in putting in “the hard yards”.

“And I expect everyone on our parliamentary team to do the same – to make this happen,” he said.

“NSW is under a Minns minority Labor government that keeps re-announcing the same things while the state’s problems keep getting worse.”

NSW Opposition leader Mark Speakman is facing a leadership crisis after frontbencher Wendy Tuckerman quit over the party's failure to oppose Labor's controversial energy laws.

The turmoil within the parliamentary party comes as Mr Speakman and Nationals leader Dugald Saunders work out who and if they will run in the seat of Kiama, held up until Friday by jailed former Liberal turned independent MP Gareth Ward.

Local solicitor Paul Ell, who has long been regarded as a possible successor to Ward, confirmed with The Sunday Telegraph that he was not interested.

The by-election poses a further headache for Mr Speakman, with the Liberals potentially facing criticism if they do not put up a candidate while facing a possible drubbing by voters if they do.

Disgraced Kiama MP Gareth Ward is now behind bars after his conviction on charges of sexual intercourse without consent and indecent assault. Picture: NewsWire / Max Mason-Hubers

During his address to the NSW Women’s Council on Wednesday, Mr Greiner revealed preparations to be well under way for the 2027 state election.

The preparations included a visit to meet with the parliamentary team, during which Mr Greiner said he had given them “an encouraging kick in the pants”.

“The state election preparations are under way with some deliberate speed,” he told the council.

Mr Greiner also revealed the party was about to start choosing its creative and social media advisers, while a new pollster was also about to chosen, noting how the party’s federal polling had been “monumentally wrong”.

“A modern political party can’t get its polling that wrong,” Mr Greiner said.

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