Nationals leader David Littleproud blinks after pulling one of the biggest tantrums in federal history
David Littleproud has blinked just two days after throwing one of the most epic and self-harming tantrums in modern political history.
On Tuesday, Littleproud announced his Nationals party would walk away from the Coalition agreement for the first time since 1987.
By Thursday, after directly contacting Anthony Albanese to plead for extra resources, Littleproud was forced by his own MPs and Sussan Ley to come back to the negotiating table.
In the 48-hours prior to the backflip, Littleproud and supporters struggled to explain why the split was necessary and how it would not mortally damage the conservative parties.
While bloodletting following the apocalyptic May 3 defeat was expected and necessary, the speed of Littleproud’s dramatic exit from the Coalition has caused some inside the Nationals and Liberals to question his judgement and leadership of the country party.
Littleproud, who likes to blame the media and “Canberra bubble” for his mistakes, walks in the footsteps of legendary Nationals leaders including John McEwen, Doug Anthony, Tim Fischer and John Anderson. It is impossible to imagine his predecessors pulling the same clumsy stunt.
Ley is also facing questions from senior Liberal MPs as to how the situation was allowed to blow-up so publicly.
While Littleproud’s four non-negotiable policy demands were designed to set-up Ley, the new Opposition Leader breached her own promise to not make “captain’s calls”.
The Liberal leader, who on Thursday was proven honest after Littleproud conceded he had raised the prospect of Nationals members not being bound by shadow cabinet solidarity, should have taken the four Nationals policy demands to her party room.
Her direct message to Littleproud on Monday, in which she could not guarantee all policies until a post-election review was complete, was predictably weaponised by some in the Nationals to justify their divorce from the Liberal Party.
After some constructive feedback from Liberal colleagues, Ley has now called a party room meeting to discuss the Nationals demands and is taking charge of locking-in the Coalition before parliament returns on July 22. Prominent Liberal MPs, Senators and backroom figures have consistently said there will be no trouble landing positions that would align with the Nationals’ demands.
Littleproud faces the bigger dilemma moving forward.
At the Nationals party room on Tuesday morning, he read out verbatim Ms Ley’s message about the four policies as fuel to win majority support for his scorched earth strategy. He did not receive unanimous support and some who didn’t oppose the pathway privately considered the option a “train wreck”.
Critically, Littleproud did not mention to party room colleagues his private demands for Nationals shadow cabinet members to be allowed free votes, which were first raised with Ley last week when he travelled to Albury to discuss the Coalition agreement.
Since Tuesday, Coalition elders and supporters have urged Littleproud and Ley to keep the conservative partnership together.
With Albanese boasting a massive majority in the parliament after his landslide victory, their argument was that the Liberals and Nationals could not afford to fight each other or lose any of the remaining expertise and experience across both parties.
As Albanese waits to resume parliament until the new Senate is in place from July 1, Ley and Littleproud have the time to get it right the second time around. Up-and-coming Liberal and Nationals MPs and senators, who were licking their lips at the thought of promotion, will have to cool their heels a little longer.
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