Julie Bishop and Barnaby Joyce line up for Craig Kelly

Deputy Lib leader Julie ­Bishop has given her backing to besieged MP Craig Kelly, who is facing a preselection challenge.

Liberal MP Craig Kelly has received support from Julie Bishop in his preselection battle. Picture: Britta Campion

Deputy Liberal leader Julie ­Bishop has given her backing to besieged MP Craig Kelly, who is facing a preselection challenge by moderate factional warriors in his southern Sydney seat of Hughes.

The endorsement from Ms Bishop will be followed by a reference from Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce and, along with the backing of Malcolm Turnbull, hands Mr Kelly a trifecta of support from the most senior figures in government.

Mr Kelly is using his endorsements — including the public backing of Tony Abbott — to ­fortify his position in Hughes, with his support coming from across the different factions of the Liberal Party and the Coalition divide.

However, Mr Kelly has not asked for, nor received, any written support from Scott Morrison, who holds the neighbouring seat of Cook. The Treasurer told 2GB last month that he had “given strong support to people like Craig Kelly who is my neighbour down in the Shire”.

Nominations for the seat close tomorrow.

In her letter addressed to the NSW Liberal Party state director, executive and party members, Ms Bishop says: “It is clear that Craig Kelly has the support of the people of Hughes and I have no doubt that he will continue to win the seat comfortably for the Coalition, should he be preselected as our candidate.

“He has been a powerful ­advocate on behalf of the people of Hughes and they can be confident their interests will continue to be represented by an active and hardworking MP.”

Mr Joyce told The Australian last night he would be providing Mr Kelly with a reference.

“I ­respect the work that Craig has done in taking up the battle for small business, especially as it ­pertains to competition law ­issues,” he said. “I don’t know any other candidate, so I’m supporting Craig, not so much as a reflection on anybody else’s character, but on the character that I know.”

While Kent Johns, a former Labor mayor of Rockdale, is being pushed heavily by moderate heavyweight Michael Photios as the key challenger to Mr Kelly in Hughes, there are some senior NSW moderates who oppose the push.

Liberal sources also informed The Australian that if Mr Johns was to nominate for the seat and win preselection he would be seen as a supporter of Mr Morrison.

Mr Johns, a party vice-­president, defected from Labor in 2002 after reporting corruption at Rockdale City Council to the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption.

A December 2014 Liberal fundraiser organised by Mr Johns and held at a Liverpool restaurant ahead of the NSW state election embarrassed Mr Morrison when he was photographed with ­convicted drug supplier Tony ­Atanasovski — known as “The Falcon”.

The photograph was published in the St George and Sutherland Shire Leader last November. Mr Atanasovski was quoted as saying he was on parole at the time of the fundraiser for the Liberal candidate for Holsworthy, Melanie Gibbons.

The party’s then state director, Tony Nutt, said Mr Morrison — who was then immigration minister — had attended as a guest speaker and had no role in the ­organisation of the event.