The Hume MP snatched the top job from Ley, winning the vote with a better-than-expected 34-17 margin during a party room meeting at Parliament House in Canberra.
Can Angus Taylor lead the Liberals to victory in the next election?
Taylor began his speech by thanking Ley for taking on the “incredibly difficult task” of leading the Liberals following the 2025 election loss.
“Her work ethic has been absolutely relentless,” he said.
“She is a great person, a great Liberal.”
The newly-elected opposition leader acknowledged the Liberal Party’s staggering loss in voter support, saying that if an election was held today, “we may not exist by the end of it”.
He then blamed Australia’s rising house prices and economic instability on Labor’s immigration policy.
“We’ll stand for an immigration policy that puts the interests of Australians first, and puts Australian values at the centre of that policy,” Taylor said.
“If someone doesn’t subscribe to our core beliefs, the door must be shut.”
He then vowed to scrap Labor’s electric vehicle (EV) taxes, lower personal taxes altogether and to deliver more funding to the military.
“‘This party must always be the party of fight Labor’s bad taxes – taxes on homes, taxes on our children’s future,” he said.
”Under my leadership, the Liberals will nurture national confidence and love for our country.
“We’ll focus on the things that unite us – family, community, and nation.
“And that revitalisation starts today.”
Victorian senator Jane Hume has been elected deputy leader.
The outspoken Ley critic was one of four candidates alongside incumbent Ted O’Brien and fellow challengers Dan Tehan and Melissa Price.
Speaking alongside Taylor, Hume said she would make it her mission to ensure the country has a “bright future”.
“The Liberal Party is a party of hope, and it is a party of aspiration. But most importantly, it is a party for all Australians,” she said.
Hume had praised Ley’s personal qualities to reporters outside Parliament House earlier this morning, despite calling for a change of direction for the party in recent days.
“Sussan Ley has been a diligent, hard-working servant to our party and to the country, but unfortunately, we’re simply not cutting through now. Australians are rightly aggrieved,” Hume said.
‘No hard feelings’: Ley quits parliament after being ousted
Ley was the first to speak after being toppled by Taylor during today’s vote, where she announced her intention to retire from politics.
Her resignation will trigger a by-election in her electorate of Farrer in south-western NSW.
“I am not sure what comes next for me. I look forward to stepping away completely and comprehensively from public life,” Ley said.
Ley was quick to assure voters there was “no hard feelings”.
“Today I want to express gratitude for the Liberal party that I have known and loved for half of my adult life,” she added.
“I wish Angus Taylor well. I know that he has experience, energy and drive.”
Taylor set the wheels in motion for the spill earlier this week after resigning from the frontbench before claiming he believed Ley was unable to lead the party.
Today’s spill had been described as a “change-or-die” moment for the Liberals by senior conservative senator James Paterson.
Taylor yesterday put his case to the people of Australia head of his triumphant spill motion.
“The Labor government has failed and the Liberal Party has lost its way,” he said in a video posted to social media.
”I’m running to be the leader of the Liberal Party because I believe that Australia is worth fighting for.
“I believe we need strong and decisive leadership that gives Australians clarity, courage, and confidence in providing a vision for the future.”
Ley’s short tenure as leader had been marred by two splits with junior Coalition partner the Nationals.
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