Turnbull urged to unleash ‘inner mongrel’

Malcolm Turnbull is being urged to take the fight to Labor with more ‘passion and aggression’ in the wake of the Queensland election.

Malcolm Turnbull at Sydney’s Macquarie Park yesterday. Picture: Hollie Adams

Malcolm Turnbull is being urged to take the fight to Labor with more “passion and aggression” in the wake of the Queensland election, as his own MPs question his ability to relate to regional voters and what he stands for.

LNP MP Scott Buchholz, who was dumped as chief government whip following the 2015 leadership transition from Tony Abbott, told The Australian the Prime Minister needed to better sell his policy message and run a harder negative campaign against Labor.

Mr Buchholz made a personal plea for Mr Turnbull and his leadership team to rediscover their inner “mongrel,” saying it was still possible to win the next election by more effectively promoting a cut-through political narrative.

His intervention came as veteran LNP senator Ian Macdonald blasted the 2015 leadership transition as a political “disaster”, arguing the Liberals were losing support to other Right wing parties.

Mr Buchholz, who holds the regional Queensland seat of Wright, said it was the job of backbenchers to “get a message through to the Prime Minister’s office in terms of what we expect”.

“The greater LNP would like to see the Turnbull government selling its messages, selling its outcomes, selling the fact it stopped the boats, selling its job creation figures and that anything other than a Turnbull government is a threat to all of those.”

 

Mr Buchholz said it was crucial for Mr Turnbull to reconnect with disillusioned voters because there was a deep hostility towards Bill Shorten.

“Where he (Mr Turnbull) has taken the fight up to Labor with passion and aggression he has been received well. I think if we get our messaging right, Turnbull can win the next election,” he said. Analysis by The Australian shows that since last year’s federal election, the Opposition Leader spent more time campaigning in north and central Queensland compared with Mr Turnbull.

Mr Shorten has spent at least 40 days in Queensland compared to 14 trips made by Mr Turnbull.

Mr Turnbull has made only three visits to north Queensland, where Mr Shorten has spent considerable time visiting Townsville and Cairns. The Australian can reveal Mr Shorten has made six visits to Townsville, five visits to Mackay, and three visits to Cairns.

Senator Macdonald expressed his dismay with Mr Turnbull’s leadership. In a Sky News interview he said the PM was losing the support of the Liberal Party’s base vote to other right-wing parties. “There’s no doubt about it — Malcolm is not seen as representing people in northern and ­regional Queensland,” Senator Macdonald said. “They see him as a city person with city values. I know that is not right but there is quite frankly a lot of work to be done.”