Warring Victorian Liberals spring a data leak

Private details of hundreds of Victorian Liberal Party members have been leaked to discredit key federal and state MPs.

Victorian Liberal Party director Sam McQuestin is checking to see whether any details have been stolen from party databases

Police will be asked to investigate a massive data breach in the Victorian Liberal Party, one which could spark a federal intervention in the increasingly dysfunctional branch.

The private details of hundreds of party members have been leaked to discredit key federal and state MPs across Melbourne, sparking an internal investigation into the release of the highly confidential information.

The Liberal Party has since been inundated with complaints from members who are being cold-called to discuss their private political affairs, including how their memberships were paid and who paid for them.

One Liberal MP said the leak appeared to be the “biggest in Australian political history” and that it would fuel demands for ­national intervention in the party’s Victorian branch.

The breach appears to be part of a campaign to discredit some federal and state MPs over alleged branch stacking.

Victorian director Sam McQuestin is checking to see whether any details have been stolen from party databases — of particular concern is whether any credit card or other payment ­information was leaked.

The second possibility is that the leaked private information was collated over several years from preselections and party ­forums like state council, where lists are kept of members for voting purposes.

One MP familiar with the leak said he had been inundated with members calling his office to complain about their private details being handed to outside parties for the purposes of factional ­pursuits. Several journalists are believed to have received all or some of the information.

One party member who was contacted last week said it “felt like an interrogation” when he was called and questioned about the way his membership was paid. “It was an invasion of privacy,” he said.

The Australian understands that there are normally two official party lists that are separated according to contact and payment details. While it is unclear whether credit card details have been leaked, several people spoken to by The Australian said this was a “live option” because of the nature of the questioning.

The issue was also raised in the most recent state partyroom meeting, when former Victorian leader Matthew Guy questioned what was being done about the leaks which — at the least — are a breach of party rules.

“There will be a police referral into this,” one MP, who is prohibited from speaking publicly about the party’s internal affairs, said. “We cannot be having such a serious data breach and not do something about it,” another said. The leak is being seen as the latest outbreak of hostilities being waged internally over the recruitment of new members.

A push by conservative members to recruit heavily in some branches — and oust sitting MPs — has divided the Liberal Party in recent years.

That move has included targeting some ethnic and religious groups in key suburbs for recruitment, a process defended by the recruiters as necessary to bolster the party’s ageing demographic.

The leaked information would enable a determination about whether memberships have been legitimate or part of a branch-stacking process.

The Australian understands membership details have been recently sought unsuccessfully by at least one senior Liberal.

Under the Liberal Party constitution, there are several things that can trigger federal intervention, including substantial noncompliance with its federal constitution.

It also includes anything that substantially prejudices the ability of the party to effectively contest or win a federal election.

The Victorian Liberal Party has been seriously undermined for years by internal divisions and infighting that has dogged the state opposition in particular.

It has hampered the ability of the party to fight elections and regularly wasted resources while battling the infighting.

Federal intervention would require a vote of 75 per cent of the federal executive and a simple majority of the state presidents.

The role of former Howard government minister Kevin ­Andrews, who has been fighting to remain in federal politics, continues to be under scrutiny from his factional opponents.

There has also been disquiet about the way members have been recruited in Melbourne’s east, with claims the integrity of the party has been damaged by aggressive recruiting.

With well over 15,000 members, the party has been fighting for years to bolster numbers because of an ageing demographic.