By Tom Rabe
The stoush over a suddenly vacated NSW Liberal upper house seat has descended into party-wide chaos, drawing in senior figures of the state government and former prime minister Scott Morrison.
A plan by the moderate faction to install Liberal Women’s Council president Jacqui Munro into the Legislative Council seat appeared to be falling apart on Tuesday evening amid protests from other sections of the party.
Liberal Women’s Council president Jacqui Munro has been supported by the moderate arm of the party.Credit: Oscar Colman
The seat is tethered to southern Sydney branches, with some local members insisting the candidate should instead hail from the region that extends towards Kiama.
Multiple senior Liberal sources said Morrison had become involved in the process on Tuesday, and expressed a view to some members that the upper house seat vacated by Peter Poulos should be filled by a south Sydney local.
Outgoing member for Holsworthy Melanie Gibbons, whose electorate falls within the region, has been floated as a potential candidate to fill the seat, as has Sutherland Shire Mayor Carmelo Pesce. Morrison’s federal electorate Cook also takes in parts of Sydney’s south and includes the suburbs of Kurnell, Cronulla and Caringbah.
Poulos was disendorsed and temporarily booted from the party for forwarding an intimate photograph of a female colleague from a Penthouse magazine.
Senior Liberals from across the party’s factions described the process as a mess that may not be resolved for several days, with the original ballot for the position expected to be voted upon on Monday or Tuesday.
“I don’t know how it’s going to resolve itself, honestly. It could bleed for another few days,” one moderate Liberal MP speaking on the condition of anonymity said.
Another described the moderates’ efforts to get Munro over the line as “flogging a dead horse”.
“We need to stop fighting one another and go and fight the Labor Party.”
Former prime minister Scott Morrison expressed a view that the seat should be filled by a local from the southern Sydney region.Credit: Rhett Wyman
Senior members of the moderates were still pushing for Munro on Tuesday afternoon, while others were suggesting former Young Liberal president Deyi Wu should be put on the ballot to be voted on by the party’s state executive.
Several Liberal sources speaking on the condition of anonymity said the impasse over one seat had prompted some members to suggest the party’s entire upper house ticket be torn up and re-drafted.
Munro has attracted criticism from some elements of the party for working for then-independent City of Sydney council Kerryn Phelps in 2018.
However, Munro did not help Phelps in her federal political tilt in Wentworth, instead campaigning for the Liberal candidate Dave Sharma.
Premier Dominic Perrottet dismissed a question regarding the upper house seat on Tuesday, saying he had addressed the issue on Monday.
Outgoing Transport Minister David Elliott’s name was still being circulated as an outside possibility.
A third senior Liberal source said an upper house deal struck by facets of the party last year had rankled parts of the membership, and the current factional brawl over Poulos’ seat could be pinpointed back to the lack of consultation.
“If it had been more consultative last year, I don’t think we would have been in this mess today,” they said.
“I don’t think we’re anywhere near finding a solution.”
Key moderate Treasurer Matt Kean has insisted the position be filled by a woman, and on Monday shot down suggestions the upper house spot be used to save Elliott’s political career.
Morrison was contacted for comment.
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