Nationals deputy leader ‘intends’ to sign Coalition agreement but ‘it’s never a certainty’

Kevin Hogan says while his party intends to recommit to a Coalition agreement with the Liberals, a deal is ‘never a certainty’ amid a deepening rift over the net zero emissions target.

Nationals leader David Littleproud flanked by Kevin Hogan and Bridget McKenzie at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: Martin Ollman/NewsWire

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Nationals deputy leader Kevin Hogan says while his party intends to recommit to a Coalition agreement with the Liberals, a deal is “never a certainty” amid a deepening rift over the net zero emissions by 2050 target.

After winning the deputy leader position in a partyroom vote on Monday, Mr Hogan said while he supported the Nationals’ current formal commitment to the net zero target through nuclear generation, “all policies are on the table to review”.

David Littleproud left the door open to dumping the climate target in his first public remarks after he fought off a challenge from Matt Canavan, as he comes under pressure from within his own party to revisit the emissions policy.

Mr Hogan congratulated Sussan Ley on clinching the Liberal leadership on Tuesday, saying conversations would soon commence on the future of the agreement.

“There will be a chat very soon between the two leaders, where we will go through what we go through after every election, and that’s a formal Coalition agreement,” Mr Hogan said.

“And I know we’re going into that with the intention of doing a Coalition agreement but obviously it’s never a done deal, and it’s never a certainty, but we certainly have good will to try and do one.”

Mr Hogan said all policies should be in the debate for review as part of the post-election soul-searching, including net zero, but his view was in line with his ­Nationals colleagues.

“My position is the will of the partyroom,” he said. “The partyroom decided … a number of years ago that we are committed to net zero. So obviously, the whole basis of when we landed on the nuclear policy, we thought if we’re going to achieve net zero, we need to keep the lights on.

“That’s where the nuclear policy came from, that’s the position of the room.”

Mr Hogan said the signing of a new Coalition agreement could be delayed by a “few points of contention” but he hoped to see a new deal forged.

Nationals MP Michelle Landry said she would like to see the agreement with the Liberals continue but she supported revisiting the net zero emissions targets.

“We make a decision as a team, and I think it’s important for us to do that,” she said. “Obviously, a lot of my constituents are really against it, particularly when I’m from probably the biggest coalmining area in the country.

“So there’s a lot of discussion about getting out of the Paris Agreement and net zero targets.

“It’s probably timely for us all to have another discussion about it.”

Senator Matt Canavan singled out “net zero madness” as a motivation behind his run for the Nationals leadership, saying: “We are losing our living standards, we are losing our jobs, we are losing our industries, and we are losing the confidence that we are the Lucky Country.“

“I am glad my run for the Nats leadership has given the comfortable, coddled and second-rate political class of this country a shake,” he said.