David Littleproud has blown up the opposition and handed additional authority to Anthony Albanese
David Littleproud is now leading the right-wing version of the extreme Greens after walking away from a Coalition agreement with Sussan Ley’s Liberals.
The Nationals, which are as far away from the centre as the Greens, have thrown their toys out of the pram despite receiving almost every policy they have demanded, often to the detriment of the Liberals.
It is complete nonsense for Littleproud to suggest the Nationals haven’t got what they wanted.
Scott Morrison promised the Nationals billions of dollars for a net zero policy by 2050 that Littleproud and a majority of his party room gladly accepted. Peter Dutton took a $20bn Regional Australia Future Fund to the May 3 election, handed the Nationals an oversubscribed seventh shadow cabinet spot and allowed Littleproud to float his unworkable divestiture big stick policies despite his own Liberal colleagues opposing the approach.
Littleproud claims they are breaking up (for now) without explaining why they’re breaking up. It is the political version of a trial separation between a couple with fundamental differences, who will likely need counselling from some wise conservative elders.
The Coalition agreement tantrum, which comes less than 7 days after Ley was elected and days after her mother passed away, smacks of the worst type of short-term posturing in the wake of the most devastating result for the conservative parties in history.
Littleproud, who leads a divided Nationals and is desperate to cling on to his job, is no Joh Bjelke-Petersen, who famously waged a “Joh for PM” campaign in 1987.
The Queenslander, who ironically is a member of the Liberal National Party, is talking nonsense about nuclear and other pet policies. The Liberals, who are undertaking a policy review, are expected to land on the same position as the Nationals when it comes to nuclear energy. Both parties will support a technology agnostic position and moving towards ending nuclear prohibition.
Littleproud was Dutton’s loyal deputy leader who is delusional in trying to wash his hands of the disastrous election platform he signed-off on.
Following the devastating election result, Littleproud has lost his deputy leader Perin Davey, his high-profile Northern Territory senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, failed to win back Calare from Andrew Gee, couldn’t win the seats of Bendigo and Bullwinkel, and copped swings against the party in most of his Nationals lower house seats. The result meant the Nationals were only going to get six shadow cabinet spots. And Ley wasn’t going to bend to more Nationals’ ransom threats.
Littleproud, 48, has blown up the opposition, effectively cut resources for the Liberals and Nationals and handed additional authority to Anthony Albanese.
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