Expelled MP Moira Deeming headlines sold out Liberal event

Liberals say they’re not aware of a western suburbs Liberal fundraiser ever attracting so many attendees as the sold-out event, headlined by the expelled Victorian Lib.

(L-R) Peta Credlin, Claire Chandler, Sarah Henderson, Moira Deeming, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, Warren Mundine, Anthony Dillon, Bev McArthur. Back Row: Alex Antic. The group was photographed together at a Liberal Party fundraiser held at West Waters Hotel, Caroline Springs, in Melbourne's west, on Saturday.

Hundreds of supporters have ­attended a sold-out Liberal Party fundraiser in Melbourne’s western suburbs, headlined by expelled Victorian Liberal Moira Deeming, alongside a panel that included two federal shadow cabinet ministers and two Indigenous leaders.

An advertising poster for the Liberal Party fundraising event. Artwork: Renee Gorman.

Party sources say only about half of the 450 people who bought tickets were Liberal Party members, with Mrs Deeming appearing on a panel alongside senators Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, Sarah Henderson, Claire Chandler and Alex Antic, Indigenous leaders and No vote campaigners Warren Mundine and Anthony Dillon, and state upper house MP Bev McArthur.

Key issues discussed on the panel mediated by Sky News ­anchor, News Corp columnist and former prime ministerial chief of staff Peta Credlin included Mrs Deeming’s expulsion from the state parliamentary party, the ­Indigenous voice to parliament, women’s, children’s and parent’s rights as they relate to transgender issues, energy policy and freedom of speech.

Guests at the event – at the West Waters hotel in Caroline Springs – included representatives of the LGB alliance, which campaigns for sex-based rights for lesbians, gay men and bisexuals, and members of Muslim, Indian, Croatian, Macedonian and Greek communities.

“It’s a long time since there’s been a Liberal Party branch event in Victoria that’s pulled a crowd of 450-plus, with such a broad cross-section of attendees,” Credlin told The Australian.

“These were not the usual Liberal supporters, indeed Moira encouraged people to bring along with them a couple of guests that had never been to a Liberal event before, and they did. If the Liberals ever want to return to government, these are the Victorians they must get to vote for them.

“After the event, I spoke with leaders of the Muslim community, women from LGB Alliance dismayed at the erosion of women’s rights, Australians of many different migrant backgrounds, young people, older people – it was an incredibly diverse crowd and that’s what the Liberal Party must attract if it hopes to be relevant and hold office again in Victoria.

Peta Credlin, Claire Chandler, Sarah Henderson, Moira Deeming, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, Warren Mundine and (rear) Alex Antic. The group was photographed together at a Liberal Party fundraiser in Melbourne's west on Saturday.

“The politicians and other guest speakers were there to connect with Western Melbourne but also to show their public support for Moira. I have spoken at party-related events … in recent weeks and on both occasions, the mention of her name drew spontaneous applause because the rank and file support her advocacy on behalf of women and girls and their right to single-sex spaces.

“If the Victorian Liberal Party head office doesn’t understand how mainstream her advocacy is, then they’re even more out of touch than recent electoral results would show.”

Senator Price said it had been an “absolute pleasure and a privilege to support my friend Moira Deeming” at the event, while Senator Henderson said the event showed the party was working hard to build “confidence and faith in the Liberal Party” in suburbs taken for granted by Labor.

Victorian Opposition Leader John Pesutto. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Luis Enrique Ascui

Asked on Sunday whether the popularity of the event undermined his authority, state Liberal leader John Pesutto said he was “perfectly comfortable with people attending whatever events they want to go to”.