‘Determined to fight on’: Pesutto committed to remaining Liberal leader

John Pesutto has said he will not step down as leader of the Victorian Liberal Party in the aftermath of a damaging split vote over the return of ousted MP Moira Deeming.

John Pesutto has once again insisted he will not resign as Liberal Leader amid a deeply divided partyroom.

“I am determined to fight on, on behalf of the Victorian people,” Mr Pesutto said on Saturday.

“The Victorian people know me now after two years as a fighter for them.”

Speaking after door-knocking in Prahran ahead of the upcoming by-election, Mr Pesutto denied members of his party leadership had given him a deadline to quit following a 50/50 split vote on whether to let ousted MP Moira Deeming back into the partyroom.

“I haven’t been given an ultimatum, no,” he said.

Victorian Liberal Party leader John Pesutto addresses the media on Saturday. Picture: Ian Currie

Mr Pesutto again repeatedly refused to openly admit he had defamed Mrs Deeming to the tune of $300,000 damages.

He instead said he was sorry “for the findings” of the court.

“I would say to the partyroom and to Mrs Deeming that I am sorry for the findings that have been reported on, but it’s important to move on,” Mr Pesutto said.

He went on to say he would “explore” options for apologising personally to Mrs Deeming but had yet to do so.

Mr Pesutto was on Friday urged to resign by a delegation of MPs as his support group fractured just hours after he cast the decisive vote that resulted in Mrs Deeming’s return being rejected.

Shadow finance minister Jess Wilson and shadow treasurer Brad Rowswell met with Mr Pesutto after the special meeting to request that he step down.

One supporter of Mr Pesutto told the Herald Sun that his leadership was now in crisis and “an arrangement” had to be brokered.

But on Saturday, Mr Pesutto said he was committed to staying on and wanted to focus on positive polling for the Coalition, which showed he was perhaps more popular with the public than within his own party.

Polling in October showed the Coalition had overtaken Labor on a two-party-preferred basis for the first time in seven years.

“What the polls reflect is that we’re resounding in the community in a positive way,” he said.

“We’re giving people not only an alternative to the Allan Labor government but we’re rolling out our vision for Victoria, whether it’s fixing integrity around our budgets and getting our debt under control, whether it’s ensuring that we have gas in our energy mix so people can get energy at a price they can afford when they need it.”

A group unfurls banners on the steps of Spring St.

Mr Pesutto called Saturday’s press conference not to resign but primarily to lash out at inaction following a neo-Nazi demonstration on the steps of parliament on Friday night.

“Fire bombings of synagogues and Nazis on the steps of parliament are the new norm in Victoria,” he said.

“I very much want to know why these people can’t be charged under existing laws.

“The Racial and Religious Tolerance Act does contain some core offenses, which, on the strength of what we’ve seen reported from the footage, may well have been breached. That’s for Victoria police to investigate, but I would like answers to that, and I know my colleagues in the broader Victorian community would like answers to that.”