Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull urges bigger, broader Liberal base

THE  Tasmanian Liberal Party must transform itself and become more accessible if it wanted to win back three seats lost at the federal election, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told the party’s state council.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told the Liberal state council in Launceston the party needs to broaden its base. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

THE  Tasmanian Liberal Party must transform itself and become more accessible if it wanted to win back three seats lost at the federal election, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told the party’s state council.

After paying tribute to the former tourism minister Richard Colbeck, who was dropped to the unwinnable fifth spot on the Senate ticket, and the so-called Three Amigos — Andrew Nikolic, Eric Hutchinson and Brett Whiteley — Mr Turnbull told members the party needed a much larger and more representative membership.

“We must also look within and transform our party so that we can face future elections in a better position to win back those seats,” he said in Launceston yesterday.

“We must not forget that our strength is our grassroots. They must be deeper, broader and genuinely constitute a cross section of the people we represent. To achieve this, we need greater involvement from our committee members — and that includes the selection of parliamentary candidates — and strengthen the membership’s capacity to contribute to policy.”

Mr Turnbull said the party’s membership had shrunk.

“My generation and my children’s generation are not joiners in the way that our parents and grandparents were,” he said. “I’m determined to build a bigger and better Liberal Party.

“We need a bigger, broader grassroots base. It is critical for us to do that and I am keen to hear your ideas of what you propose to do in Tasmania to make our party more accessible and broaden its reach.”

Deposed MPs Mr Nikolic, Mr Hutchinson and Mr Whiteley had a lot more to contribute to public life, the PM said.

A full and frank review of the Liberals’ 2016 election campaign was in progress under former trade minister Andrew Robb.

Speaking to a motion that the Federal and State Governments abolish the Safe Schools program, Mr Whiteley, who was elected senior vice-president, labelled it a “disgusting program, a political activist tool with a radical left wing agenda”.

When a group of politicians reviewed the program witnesses had to be in the room to ensure allegations of paedophilia did not result from examination of the websites linked to the program, he said.

“Within two hyperlinks our children would be in adult sex websites,” he said.

However, Education Minister Jeremy Rockliff told members that the program had been rolled out in 20 schools in Tasmania and was going well.

“I have every confidence that the 20 schools that have signed up to the program are doing it in a responsible way,” he said.

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Originally published as Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull urges bigger, broader Liberal base