Alex Turnbull says he’s ‘involved’ in campaign by Julia Banks to unseat Greg Hunt

Alex Turnbull, the son of the former PM, confirms he’s “involved” in the campaign by Julia Banks to unseat Greg Hunt.

Then prime minster Malcolm Turnbull leaving his Point Piper home with his son Alex. Picture: Hollie Adams

The son of former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull says he’s “involved” in the campaign by ex-Liberal MP Julia Banks to unseat Health Minister Greg Hunt at the federal election.

“I’m involved, I’ll leave it at that,” Alex Turnbull told Nine newspapers. But he denied his father was also involved.

It comes as The Australian reports GetUp has targeted government figures including Tony Abbott and Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton by developing a “spine” of connections to independents who will run as Liberal-lite candidates in the federal election.

Liberal renegade Ms Banks has vowed to put climate change and gender equality front and centre when she runs against anti-Turnbull MP Mr Hunt in the Victorian seat of Flinders.

The electorate takes in much of the Mornington Peninsula where Ms Banks has owned a property for the past 20 years.

Late last year Alex Turnbull committed to fund independent, locally based “small-L liberal” candidates who advocated action on climate change.

Alex Turnbull.

The Singapore-based fund manager vowed to support “reasonable” independents to run at the May election and committed to donate his own money and help raise funds for the right candidates in key government seats.

Alex Turnbull has become increasingly outspoken against the Coalition in the wake of the ousting of his father as prime minister. During the Wentworth by-election, he advocated voters in his father’s old seat not to vote Liberal.

“We’re going to have an election in 12 months anyway, so if you want to send a signal as to which way the Liberal Party is going, and your displeasure with where it’s going, then this is your opportunity,” Alex Turnbull said. “Don’t vote for the Liberal Party in the Wentworth by-election. If you want to pull the Liberal Party back from the brink, it’s the one clear signal you can send.”

He attacked Liberal “extremists on the hard right who aren’t particularly motivated to win an election and aren’t particularly motivated to serve the general public’’.

“They just want to pursue a crazy agenda,” he said.

Ms Banks, who will stand down from her current seat of Chisholm, defected to the crossbench after Mr Turnbull was toppled as Liberal leader in August.

“Effective climate change action policy is an urgent imperative,” she said in a statement on Thursday.

“In relation to refugees, I’ll always be an advocate for a humanitarian approach.

“And I’ll continue focused advocacy on gender equality, fair and equitable workplace cultures and equal representation of women in leadership positions.”

Ms Banks has been the member for Chisholm in Melbourne’s southeast since 2016, when she became the only member of the federal coalition to win a seat from Labor.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says he wouldn’t want to be Mr Hunt. “The chickens have come home to roost in the form of the very formidable Julia Banks,” he told reporters in Brisbane.

“Her running in Flinders is the ultimate sign of the failure of the prime minister’s authority over his own party.” But Mr Hunt, who has held Flinders since 2001, downplayed suggestions the challenge stems from his role in ousting Mr Turnbull.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison believes Mr Hunt will hold onto the seat. “Greg Hunt has worked like a Trojan for his community since the day he was elected in the seat of Flinders,” he told reporters in Brisbane.

With AAP