The West Australian Liberal Party has taken its “first step” towards reform, voting in favour of a significant change to the way it chooses candidates.
Key points:
- The Liberal Party lost five crucial West Australian seats at the federal election after a dismal state election result
- Major reforms will be debated across two days at the party’s state conference in Perth as it seeks to restore its image
- Senior Liberals say they are focused on winning government at the next federal election
That reform secured the support of 92 per cent of voters, and will give individual members a greater say in the pre-selection of candidates.
“This is a bringing together of the Liberal Party,” proclaimed state president Richard Wilson, who has spent the past 10 months developing the proposal.
“This is a show of unity, following the recent elections, that we are taking the first step towards reform.”
The change is significant because many within the party believe good people are not putting their hands up to run as candidates, seeing the current pre-selection process as dominated by powerbrokers.
That conclusion was shared by a scathing review into the party’s result at last year’s state election.
Some within the party — including a group calling themselves the Liberal Reform Commission, as well as former premier Colin Barnett and Western Australia’s most-senior Liberal, Senator Michaelia Cash — had been calling for members to support even more significant changes.
Those changes would have limited the ability of non-local delegates to vote in pre-selections, further limiting the control of powerbrokers.
However, those amendments failed to win favour among members, resulting in the original version succeeding.
It is understood that both amendments attracted the support of just over a third of voters, falling far short of the 75 per cent “yes” vote required to change the party’s constitution.
“It’s called democracy,” Senator Cash said when asked about the result.
“They were put. They were voted on. They did not get up … The motion that was successful is reform. That is a good thing.”
Party president confident about future reform efforts
Mr Wilson said that, despite that differences of opinion, the party was now united: “92 per cent speaks volumes. There’s not a crack of light in there.”
“If you looked at any electoral result and said that you got 92 per cent support for it, you would view that as an absolute show of unity, and that’s what we’ve seen today.”
The review into the party’s near-wipeout at a state level made 65 other recommendations, which will continue to be worked through over the weekend.
While the Liberals have not agreed to implement all of them, Mr Wilson was confident future reform efforts would be well supported.
“I’ve done it once and I’ll do it again,” he said.
“This is the most-promising first step of reform, that we can say with one voice to the people of Western Australia: ‘We have listened to you and we have made the changes that will make us strong in the future, and we will continue to do so’.”
State Liberal leader David Honey agreed.
“It sends the clearest message that the party is reforming, that it’s changing, that the role of powerbrokers has been taken away,” Mr Honey said. “Because the ordinary members of the party are going to control all of the pre-selections where we can possibly win a seat.”
Senator Dean Smith — who had been pushing for an alternative proposal — described today as “a step forward, it is not a leap”.
“We don’t have the luxury of being able to dawdle our way through the reform process, but I am hopeful,” he said.
This year’s state conference was also an important step to rebuild morale inside a party that has endured two demoralising election results in a row.
As Saturday’s conference began, Senator Cash sought to inspire the party faithful, wounded by two disastrous election results, by speaking of the members’ shared belief in “Liberal party values”, and of a three-year plan to take back government.
Senator Cash spent much of her speech criticising the Albanese government, including for winding back the powers of the Australian Building and Construction Commission.
However, before introducing a video message from federal Liberal leader Peter Dutton, who could not attend due to family commitments, Senator Cash made her feelings on reform clear.
“I hope when I get to Canberra tomorrow I can hold my head high and know that the Liberal Party of Western Australia have voted for reform,” she said, “have voted to change our party, have voted to say to the people of Western Australia: ‘We have listened. We have learned. We are moving on and we are focusing on winning government in three years’ time’.”
In his address, Mr Dutton listed off the achievements of the previous Coalition government over its nine years of power, before urging members to “come together, to make sure that we’re strong as a party”.
“Not to look back, but to make sure that we can embrace ourselves, our values and not shrink from them,” he said.
Mr Dutton said he was confident his party could bring Western Australia “home to the Liberal Party, and in big numbers” at the next election.
Women ‘instrumental’ to Liberals’ success
In Mr Dutton’s place, federal deputy leader Sussan Ley gave the in-person leader’s address, drawing on the Liberals’ history to inspire hope in members.
Ms Ley spoke of how the party had been formed after the 1943 federal election, when Labor held about 80 per cent of lower house seats, including all in Western Australia.
Six years later, Robert Menzies led to the party to a “thumping victory”, taking the majority of seats in Western Australia, she reminded attendees.
“It can be done, but it can only be done if we stay disciplined, if we stay true to our beliefs, and if we remain steadfastly committed to doing everything we can, each and every one of us in this room, to win again,” Ms Ley said.
After last year’s review found women were “not adequately represented in either the organisation or the parliamentary wings of the party”, Ms Ley highlighted the role of women in forming the party.
“Don’t let anyone tell you that the Liberal Party cannot be the party for women,” she said.
“We were. We are. We will be in future. There’s work to do, but women were instrumental in the creation of our party and they will be instrumental to our future success.”
Ms Ley also spent time criticising the current state government, and elicited cheers when proclaiming that leaving Western Australia’s Agriculture Minister, Alannah MacTiernan, in cabinet was a “shame”, following her comments over foot and mouth disease.
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