Liberal frontbencher Jonno Duniam to quit politics in blow to struggling Coalition | Coalition
Liberal frontrunner Jonno Duniam will quit politics before the end of the year, in another major blow to the embattled Coalition, which is experiencing its lowest level of popularity in decades.
The Tasmanian senator, who has been in parliament since 2016, said it was an “extremely difficult decision to make” but that he had been thinking about spending more time with his family “for quite some time”.
“I’ve spent the last 25 years in politics, the last 10 of which as a Tasmanian senator, and I’ve given my all to those responsibilities, often at the expense of my family,” he said on Sunday.
“Twenty-five years is a long time for any profession and when you take your role seriously it always comes first. It’s time to change my priorities and I can’t do that if I’m going to stay in politics.”
“I leave federal politics with pride and gratitude, but exhaustion.”
Duniam, who served as shadow home secretary, said he had informed opposition leader Angus Taylor, who asked him to end the Coalition’s immigration policy work.
“I am delighted to be able to do this and to be committed to building on the extensive work that Angus and his team have undertaken on our plan to transition to Australian values and restore integrity, trust and national interest in Australia’s immigration system,” he said.
Home secretary Tony Burke told Sky News on Sunday that Duniam was one of the opposition’s “best and brightest” figures.
The 43-year-old admitted his announcement came at a difficult time for the Coalition; According to current polling data, the Coalition could be wiped out of opposition at the next federal election if One Nation’s rise in popularity continues.
In May, a Redbridge Group/Accent Research poll published in the Australian Financial Review showed One Nation’s primary vote outpacing Labor and the Coalition for the first time.
Earlier this week, Tony Pasin, a conservative Liberal from rural South Australia and a shadow minister, suggested his party and One Nation “work hand in hand to defeat Labor” by striking a deal not to run in the same seats.
The proposal was quickly rejected by Taylor, and Liberal senator James Paterson criticized it as “premature”.
“I have no interest in sharing the spoils with another political party two years before the election and, frankly, tying our wagon to their brand until then, despite all the risks that would entail,” Paterson said.
