Kellie Sloane and Sussan Ley rally party for families-focused offensive
NSW Liberal leader Kellie Sloane and federal leader Sussan Ley made a historic appearance at the party’s state conference in Sydney on Saturday, rallying their base for a family-focused attack on their respective rival Labor governments.
Just nine days after Sloane was appointed leader, the first female duo to lead the state and federal party entered the Grand Ballroom at the Sheraton on the Park to a standing ovation from the Liberal faithful. But Sloane’s predecessor, Mark Speakman, was not among them.
NSW Liberal Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane and Federal Liberal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley arrive at the NSW Liberal State Council Meeting in Sydney on Saturday.Credit: Peter Rae
Sloane has vowed to beat Labor Prime Minister Chris Minns at the next election, scheduled for March 2027, with a campaign that means “families will be at the heart of everything we do”. He used the words “family” and “family” 20 times in his 20-minute speech.
“Many people told me that this cannot be won, and history also tells us that this cannot be won,” said the Vaucluse MP and former journalist.
“But let me tell you this: I did not take this role to take a backseat to history, because I want to change history with my team.”
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Sloane thanked Speakman, who was not present, for his leadership, describing the Cronulla MP as a friend and a strong part of the party’s campaign over the next 16 months. He touted his “young team” of six Liberals under the age of 40 in the NSW parliament.
His pitch to voters included expanding Sydney Metro and regional transport links, increasing housing supply through reform planning, reducing taxes for developers and reactivating Active Kids vouchers.
He claimed his party was “leading the opposition”, doing a “copy and paste” job on various Liberal bills, including Labor’s own strategy to tackle illegal tobacco and legislation to protect historic monuments, which he attributed to MP Alistair Henskens.
