Scott Morrison attacks ousted Liberal candidate while revealing Warren Mundine call

Scott Morrison unleashes an extraordinary attack on the man axed for Warren Mundine as the Liberal candidate in Gilmore.

Scott Morrison has unloaded on Grant Schultz while unveiling Warren Mundine as the Liberal Party candidate for Gilmore. Picture: Brendan Radke

Scott Morrison has unleashed an extraordinary attack against Grant Schultz, accusing the man who wanted to contest the seat of Gilmore for the Liberal Party of bullying and undermining the local member.

Under pressure over his captain’s pick to parachute Warren Mundine into the marginal NSW South Coast seat, the Prime Minister said the party had asked Mr Schultz to stand aside but he refused.

Mr Schultz has quit the Liberal Party in protest and will now run as an independent in the seat.

Liberal MP Ann Sudmalis, who holds Gilmore on 0.7 per cent, announced last year she would quit politics at the election amid claims of bullying and intimidation at a NSW state level.

Mr Morrison said Mr Schultz had challenged Ms Sudmalis before she had decided to resign and there was no open preselection process.

“What we have sought to do, and the division had actually asked Grant Schultz to step aside, allow new nominations to be called and we could have that sort of preselection,” Mr Morrison said in Nowra as he officially announced Mr Mundine as the Liberal candidate for Gilmore.

“He chose not to do that, now I am not going to award behaviour that sought to undermine a sitting member of parliament, I’m not going to award that in the Liberal Party.

“I have been around the Liberal Party a long time and his decision to do what he has done yesterday, I think just says the NSW state executive got it dead right. You don’t get to bully your way into a seat in the Liberal Party, that is not how it works.”

Then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull had to intervene in May last year to ensure Ms Sudmalis was preselected after Mr Schultz, a local real estate agent, made clear he would challenge her for preselection.