Adam Bandt faces new test of leadership

Greens Leader Adam Bandt is at the centre of a political storm, under attack from both sides of politics and subject to greater questioning of his position on the Middle East conflict and support for pro-Palestine demonstrators.

The Greens are not accustomed to this kind of political environment. The minor party is now being held to account.

With the Greens holding four lower house seats and expectations growing for a hung parliament at the next election, this is the price of relevancy.

It is also the silver lining for Bandt after the Greens became a political punching bag over the last 24 hours - he knows the minor party is being taken more seriously as a parliamentary force.

How Bandt uses this greater political currency will be a key test of his leadership.

Turning it to his advantage will be his objective, but the risk is it works to his detriment - mistakes and displays of political immaturity may no longer be extended the same tolerance as in previous years.

Usually, press conferences called by Bandt are attended by only a handful of inquiring journalists.

On Thursday morning this changed.

The most senior journalists in the Canberra press gallery turned up at a doorstop called by the Greens Leader and subjected him to fierce round of questioning. Bandt appeared to be taken aback in a series of intense exchanges.

“You didn’t mention Hamas and you didn’t mention the hostages,” said one journalist. “Surely one of the ways of ending the genocide, as you describe it, will be for Hamas to release the hostages ... Why do you never mention Hamas and the hostages?”

This was immediately followed by another question picking up on Bandt’s threat on Thursday morning to sue Attorney-General, Mark Dreyfus.

“You’ve accused the government of supporting slaughter. And yet you have members of the Greens who have turned up to protests that have ended in violence and people getting hurt,” said another journalist. “You dare to sue the Jewish first officer of this country. Aren’t you a hypocrite?”

A third journalist asked whether the Greens Leader would condemn the protests outside the electorate offices of MPs. “Will you ask them to stop the blockade so that members of the community can access these offices?”

He was also asked why the Greens had accused Labor of supporting the invasion of Gaza when the government had repeatedly called for a ceasefire.

Bandt was defiant and defensive. He will need to better navigate the perils of greater media scrutiny and the expectation the Greens will become more politically accountable.

But the political pile-on is unlikely to have disappointed him. Bandt is more likely to view it as a symbol of growing Greens influence, differentiation from the major parties and power to shape national debate.

The question will be whether Bandt can rise to the challenge.