David Honey’s sticky situation in Cottesloe
WA’s former Liberal leader David Honey has rubbished suggestions his next term in parliament will be his last, amid a fierce preselection battle over the party’s sole Perth seat.
Western Australia’s former Liberal leader David Honey has rubbished suggestions his next term in parliament will be his last, amid a fierce preselection battle over the party’s sole Perth seat.
Dr Honey, who lost the party leadership to Libby Mettam just over one year ago, is locked in a fight with the WA director of the Property Council of Australia, Sandra Brewer, to represent the party in the seat of Cottesloe.
Cottesloe, which takes in Perth’s wealthiest suburbs, was the only metropolitan seat left in Liberal hands after the party was all but wiped out in the 2021 state election.
Ms Brewer and entertainment lawyer Richard Evans are challenging Dr Honey for preselection, with Ms Brewer in particular understood to have secured backing from influential figures in the area.
While those close to the Brewer camp believe she has the support of a vast majority of branches, Dr Honey’s supporters believe the new plebiscite model being used for the first time will offer a significant advantage to the incumbent.
Ms Brewer is said to have won the support of key party figure Danielle Blain, who was a co-author of the damning post-2021 election review that helped drive recent party reforms.
Her supporters have argued that Ms Brewer represents a better long-term option for the seat in part because she is some 16 years younger than Dr Honey, who will be 67 by the time of the next election.
While Liberal Party rules prohibit candidates from commenting on preselections, Dr Honey told The Australian media reports saying he would leave parliament in 2029 were wrong.
“Saying that I’m leaving in 2029 is completely untrue. My intention is to continue in the role,” he said.
Dr Honey’s hopes of seeing off the challenge from Ms Brewer appear to centre on highlighting her property advocacy work, given Cottesloe residents are notorious for their opposition to high-rise development.
With the preselection to be determined through a plebiscite, Dr Honey – who has long been strident in resisting overdevelopment in the area – will be hoping to rally votes from ordinary branch members who fear seeing new apartment blocks in the coastal neighbourhood.
The party is expecting to face a challenge in Cottesloe from a teal-style independent.
Dr Honey suffered the smallest swing of any Liberal in the 2021 election massacre, with the 6.1 per cent swing against him compared to a 10-plus per cent swing by the next-best performer, Liberal leader Ms Mettam.
Ms Brewer’s supporters say she is the exact sort of candidate the party needs to help it rebuild, noting that her Property Council role aligns with the party’s pro-business fundamentals and pointing to a growing appetite for a wider range of housing options in the western suburbs.
Some close to Ms Brewer fear a preselection win by her could lead to a challenge at the party’s State Council, which has the final say in ratifying preselections.
The Cottesloe preselection will take place on February 10.
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