Sussan Ley: Farrer still comes first

In her first speech as Liberal leader this afternoon she said that representing the interests of Farrer remained her number one focus.

“It is a huge privilege to be elected as the Leader of the Liberal Party, and I want to acknowledge every one of my colleagues who’ve given me that opportunity, she said.

“While the significance of the election result is not lost on any of us, I approach this new position with enormous optimism.

“I am committed to listen to the message voters have delivered, and commit the Liberal Party to respect, reflect and represent the views and needs of modern Australia.

That said, representing the interests of Farrer is my number one focus and always has been. Being the leader of our party will never play second fiddle to looking after Farrer.

“Like so many regional areas, we are being completely ignored by Labor - I intend to be a firm, sensible voice arguing the needs of our nation, both city and country.

“I know some have said that it will be tough to balance the job of local MP with this party leadership role, but I disagree entirely: ‘tough’ was raising three children on a family farm while pursuing a university degree.”

At the May 3 election, Ms Ley faced a backlash, retaining the seat but with a swing of -8.71 per cent at the last count.

She acknowledged that her party got it wrong and that Australia expected a change in direction and a fresh approach.

“We must rebuild trust with all sections of Australian society, and my election as leader of the Liberal Party will send a very strong signal that we understand things need to be done differently.”

“We must rebuild trust with all sections of Australian society, and my election as leader of the Liberal Party will send a very strong signal that we understand things need to be done differently,” she said.

“The Liberal Party needs to listen to the Australian people and meet them where they are.

“We need to understand their aspirations… to build a new economic narrative.

“We need new policy offerings that show Australians we can help them, and their families, get ahead.”

Ms Ley said she had listened to many everyday Australians since the party’s significant election defeat, her colleagues, candidates, coalition partners, former leaders and supporters.

“Many Australians, including women and younger Australians, feel neglected by the Liberal Party,” she said.

The ALP also lost ground in the recent election with 20 per cent of first preference votes going to Independent, Michelle Milthorpe.

Mrs Milthorpe did not rule out running again in 2028.

“Obviously you want to win, but we’ve made a dent making people take notice,” she said.

“There’s been an appetite for change; this is the first time the incumbent has had to rely on preferences.

“It was a huge swing.”

Mrs Milthorpe said her team was completely novice, without any political experience, just a willingness to get in and get the jobs done.

“I ran as an Independent and came into it literally Googling how to run as an Independent,” she said.

“We aren’t a party but a community of people; no-one was paid to do anything, they did it because they believed in it.”

While the groundswell of support was clear, she said the level of misinformation, particularly around fundraising, was disappointing.

“We need to get serious about misinformation in election campaigns.”

“We need to get serious about misinformation in election campaigns,” she said.

“When it came to fundraising, the major parties were not subject to the same level of scrutiny.

“There was a lot of unbalanced reports calling me a Climate 200 Teal, and those articles weren’t giving me a right of reply.

“It makes it confusing for people.”