Is now really the time to put Andrew Hastie in Liberals top job? | Samantha Maiden
The Liberals won’t give first female leader Sussan Ley a crack at contesting an election, according to the conventional wisdom. That’s a shame, writes Samantha Maiden.
If you’ve barely heard of Sussan Ley, gather around because the fractured Liberal Party has an incredible new deal for you, coming soon.
Its dwindling band of federal MPs is flirting with the idea of installing a new leader who is an even bigger question mark.
And while desperate times call for desperate measures, there’s legitimate questions over whether the leading candidate – former SAS commander Andrew Hastie – is the right man at the right moment.
Or whether prematurely elevating him is the strategic course.
It’s a risk that Mr Hastie seems to be alive to, despite his political opponents urging him to step forward.
He might be barely known outside of folks obsessed with the Canberra bubble.
But armed with limited frontbench experience and a punchy Instagram account, he’s being hailed in some quarters as the Liberals’ great white hope for the leadership.
And the photogenic ex-military man just might be too.
Refreshingly, he does seem interested in policy and how to sell it to the masses.
To date, he’s adopted a take-no-prisoners approach to net zero, going to the backbench over the issue. And there’s no signs – yet – of him offering to return to the frontline despite the win.
Instead, he’s limbering up for a debate on immigration the conservatives are also likely to win.
Which begs the question: If he’s installed as leader as a clean sweep, what would he actually offer the moderates?
Certainly not the endless backdowns Sussan Ley has offered to keep the show together.
Perhaps the rules would be different, however, for the former soldier born in 1982 without any experience as a cabinet minister.
There’s a kind of destined-for-greatness vibe around him, despite the fact he didn’t hold any senior roles in government.
He’s basically Peter Dutton 2.0 with better hair, more charisma and more extreme views on abortion.
And the truth is, his views on some issues including abortion – he recently linked a debate over work leave rights for women who have stillbirths with not wanting to offer help for women who have late-term abortions – will be an issue if he leads the party.
What assurances does he plan to offer that his personal views won’t affect existing abortion laws?
His lack of experience doesn’t preclude him from being an excellent choice – Bob Hawke went straight to the top at an even faster clip.
Nor do his conservative religious views.
But his beliefs are likely to raise legitimate questions.
As Christmas approaches, the Liberals are jettisoning old leaders for new across the country. The Victorian state party installed Jess Wilson and the NSW party is considering replacing Mark Speakman with Adelaide-born Kellie Sloane.
It’s increasingly accepted wisdom that the Liberals won’t give its first female leader Sussan Ley a crack at contesting an election. That’s a shame.
For once in her life, ex-Liberal Senator Hollie Hughes has nailed it.
Proving that even a broken clock is right twice a day, she quit the party this week, complaining Sussan Ley had been white-anted from day one.
“It is absolutely a rabble,” Ms Hughes observed, accurately.
“It’s clear that Sussan has been undermined from day one.
“But there are some people who are completely inept, who are lazy, who are not across the details.”
She said the party no longer reflected the values of founder and former prime minister Robert Menzies.
“I don’t think they reflect what a lot of Australians feel anymore,” she said.
In fact, there’s open discussions over whether the party will split after the net zero fight.
There were also reports this week that the moderates could back Mr Hastie, which sounded more like a trap to lure him out than a job offer.
SA senator Anne Ruston and NSW counterpart Maria Kovacic were forced to reject reports that the faction had decided to back Mr Hastie as leader.
“Media reports this morning about the moderates are incorrect,” they said in a joint statement distributed by Ms Ley’s office.
“We, along with an overwhelming majority of our moderate colleagues, continue to strongly support Sussan’s leadership.
“This matter was resolved in the party room six months ago and Sussan will lead us strongly to the next election.”
Never a good sign of leadership stability when your friends are forced to put out statements like that.
But it begs the question: Why would you blow him up at this stage of the electoral cycle?
If indeed the Liberal Party asks Ms Ley to hand back the keys to the mini-van that most of the Coalition can now fit into, it’s worth pondering whether installing him in the leadership now is the best option – for him and for the party.
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Originally published as Is now really the time to put Andrew Hastie in Liberals top job? | Samantha Maiden
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