New Coalition agreement to be inked in ‘coming couple of days’, Littleproud says

Just days after announcing the Nationals were breaking up with the Liberal Party and laying bare deep tensions between the two, David Littleproud has made a bold prediction.

A new Coalition agreement will be inked in the “coming couple of days”, David Littleproud says.

The Nationals leader earlier this week announced his party was breaking up with the Liberal Party, marking the only the fourth breach in the Coalition’s 79-year history.

But days later, both Mr Littleproud and Sussan Ley confirmed the shock split was on pause following last-minute concessions from the Liberal leader.

Mr Littleproud said on Sunday he had “received the written response and confirmation that the Liberal Party is prepared to accept the four policy areas that were the reason we couldn’t sign up to that coalition”.

Nationals leader David Littleproud says he and Liberal counterpart Sussan Ley will ink a new Coalition agreement in the ‘coming couple of days’. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“They were important to us,” he told Sky News.

“They were policy areas that people before I even got into the National Party party room had fought for and could see would change the lives of the people we represent.

“And we made great progress in the last term of parliament, and I wanted to make sure that they they remained, and we couldn’t get that guarantee.”

The four policies the Nationals would not budge on in negotiations included divestiture powers for supermarkets, nuclear power, its proposed $20bn regional Australia fund and greater telecommunications coverage.

It clashed with Ms Ley’s vision of a “nothing adopted and nothing abandoned” approach to reviewing policies in the wake of the Coalition’s decimation at the federal election.

Ms Ley wanted a ‘nothing adopted and nothing abandoned’ approach to the Coalition’s policies after the federal election. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Mr Littleproud said the would be “further discussions with Susan (Ley)” in the coming week but welcomed that “the Liberal Party were able to finally appreciate” how important the policy demands were to the Nationals.

“Unfortunately, it was after we had to give the ultimate decision from our party room,” he said.

He added it was not a decision “we took lightly”, but “one that came with much sacrifice from many of our people, knowing that they weren’t going to get paid Shadow Cabinet positions and potentially lose their Senate spots”.

“But we took a principled position, and we’re appreciative that the Liberal Party party room was finally brought together to appreciate that, and we got a resolution,” Mr Littleproud said.

“I think that shows great intent from the Liberal Party.”

‘Lose my job’

Mr Littleproud has weathered internal criticism from pro-Coalition Nationals, including from party heavyweight Barnaby Joyce.

The former Nationals leader has argued splitting the Coalition harmed efforts to hold the Albanese government to account and that the events of the past week were “to be quite frank, chaos”.

Mr Joyce was among several senior National Party figures Ms Ley reached out to in a last ditch bid to save the Coalition.

She also reached out to Michael McCormack, another former Nationals leader that Mr Joyce has been reportedly working with to oust Mr Littleproud few than two weeks after fending off a leadership challenge.

Mr Littleproud says he is ‘pretty relaxed’ about rumours former National Party leaders may be trying to oust him. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

In his Sunday comments, Mr Littleproud said he was “pretty relaxed”.

“The vast majority of my party room decided to leave the Coalition,” he said.

“I enacted what was directed by me, and as a matter of days, because we took a principled position, the Liberal Party decided to revisit their position and yield to the fact that we wanted those four policy areas.”

He said he would “rather go to (parliament) standing for something, and if I have to lose my job for it, I don’t care”.

Newly elected deputy leader Kevin Hogan has backed his boss, saying he had “great respect” for how Mr Littleproud handled the past week.

Nationals deputy leader Kevin Hogan says Mr Littleproud has ‘very, very strong support’. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“My belief is that David Littleproud has very, very strong support in the Nationals party room and I would say even more support after the process that he followed,” Mr Hogan told the ABC.

“How transparent he was with the Nationals party room and the result, even though it won’t be the ideal route to get to where we got, given it was so public in the end, but the way we got there.”

He also dismissed the risk of a former leader, such as Mr McCormack, ousting Mr Littleproud as “a hypothetical that is not on the cards”.

Originally published as New Coalition agreement to be inked in ‘coming couple of days’, Littleproud says