‘Stronger together’: Sussan Ley quizzed on Coalition’s future amid net-zero divide
Sussan Ley dismissed rumors of a possible split of the Coalition after being questioned about the future of net zero.
Speaking to Sunrise co-host Nat Barr, the Opposition Leader said the Liberal Party would decide its stance on net zero before parliament returns this week.
“On day one of my leadership… I said I would listen to my colleagues, to every member of my team, and that I was proud of the contribution each of them made to the Liberal Party,” he said.
Speaking to Today later, Ms Ley said the party “will not have net zero at any cost”.
“When I became leader, I said we would develop an energy policy that provided a stable, reliable grid and that we would play our part responsibly in reducing emissions,” he said.
“And those are the two key elements that we’re still producing in energy policy, and the Liberal Party will come together to make those final decisions soon.”
While his party has yet to finalize its plans, he said he refused to copy his Coalition partner the Nationals, who abandoned the net zero policy and were “able to make their own decisions”.
“I don’t control the National Party’s timetable and I don’t want to,” Ms Ley said.
“David Littleproud and I have had discussions about coming together in the very near future when our energy policy is decided and a common policy emerges.
“Because what we know is that the Liberals and Nationals are stronger together, and together we can take on the fight for this government on the trainwreck energy policy that is currently devastating homes and families across Australia.”
The comments came after Mr Littleproud announced the National Party would abolish net zero and “build a principles-based policy platform”.
“Principles for a better, cheaper and fairer way to reduce our emissions and have an energy policy that really works for Australians,” he said after a three-hour party meeting on Sunday.
Following the National Party’s plan to repeal net zero, Ms Ley is working to keep the Coalition together.
The parties briefly split after the federal election in May this year, but reunited just over a week later.
