Former Liberal party leader resigned as member for Farrer after she was dumped as opposition leader. Follow updates live
The deputy Liberal leader, Jane Hume, has conceded the Coalition has lost the trust of voters after Saturday’s thumping Farrer by-election defeat.
The Liberal primary vote collapsed below 13% as One Nation’s David Farley romped home to victory, winning the right-wing populist party’s first ever lower house seat.
We always knew it was going to be a tough ask when a retired member, particularly one that has been long serving, more than 20 years, retires, when Labor chooses not to run and there isn’t an anti-establishment push. That’s really what we’ve seen.
We need to reflect on what it is that the people of Farrer and right around Australia are telling us that we need to rebuild trust. Trust has been lost by the Coalition.
I saw that statement late last night. Sussan, as a long serving member (is) entitled to have their say. It was interesting on the booth, though, no one mentioned Sussan Ley to me, not in pre-poll and not on election day.
Serving the people of Farrer for 25 years, having been endorsed by locals at nine elections, was the privilege of my professional life. I know David (Farley) will feel that same sense of honour and responsibility.
Until tonight, at every one of 30 elections since 1949, through difficult and challenging circumstances, it has been held without exception by the Liberal and National parties. It would be an error to reduce both the scale and significance of tonight’s defeat to a Coalition split which occurred months ago, or to misattribute it to the date the vote was held.
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