Andrew Hastie has quit the Federal Opposition’s frontbench in a dispute with Opposition Leader Sussan Ley. Photo: Andrew Hastie/Facebook.
Outspoken federal Liberal MP Andrew Hastie has quit the Coalition’s frontbench over a dispute on immigration policy and a letter from Opposition Leader Sussan Ley outlining her expectations of him.
Mr Hastie issued a statement on Friday night (3 October) saying he was resigning as the shadow home affairs minister.
He said Ms Ley’s letter made it clear he would not be involved in developing the Coalition’s immigration policy. He had refused to see Ms Ley during her recent visit to his home state of Western Australia.
“The leader has made it clear that the shadow home affairs minister won’t lead the Coalition’s response to immigration matters or develop the Coalition’s immigration strategy,” Mr Hastie said.
“On this basis, I made the decision that I was not able to continue in this role and remain silent on immigration.
“It is a well-established standard in the Westminster system that, if a member of the shadow cabinet is unwilling to live by the convention of solidarity, they must depart to the backbench.”
Ms Ley thanked Mr Hastie for his service and assured him he would remain a valued member of the Coalition team.
The Opposition Leader is demanding more discipline from her frontbench and has written to her shadow ministerial team to outline what is expected to retain their positions.
She emailed the Coalition’s senior team outlining shadow ministerial minimum standards, key performance indicators and party priorities.
The letters were crafted and sent in an effort to avoid more of the embarrassing infighting and freewheeling that had emerged from the Coalition in recent weeks.
But Ms Ley’s office told the media the letters were designed to give Coalition members direction in developing clear and credible policies to take to the next federal election.
She wants the Opposition to be on the front foot and not simply responding to Labor and the Federal Government.
The move to send the letters is a strategy usually employed by leaders of governing parties.
Known as “charter letters”, they have been used on and off by prime ministers for cabinet and ministerial standards and expectations since Labor’s Bob Hawke first introduced them in the 1980s.
Mr Hastie’s increasingly public revolt over immigration and net zero issues, plus the dramatic exit of Liberal Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price from the frontbench may have sparked the need for the letters.
“They set out policy priorities and key performance indicators, encompassing both the leader’s direction as well as areas where shadow ministers wish to advance policy,” Ms Ley’s email to he team said.
“The letters provide clear direction and a tasking to shadow ministers beyond the conventional mirroring of government portfolios, putting the Coalition on a proactive policy path.”
Last month, Ms Ley cut Senator Nampijinpa Price loose from the Coalition’s frontbench, dumping her from the shadow ministry for failing to support her leadership.
It followed a week of high and unwanted drama for the Opposition after Senator Nampijinpa Price refused to apologise for comments she made about the Indian community in Australia.
Senator Nampijinpa Price had defected from the Nationals to the Liberals in May in the hope of becoming the party’s deputy leader.
Mr Hastie had threatened to quit Ms Ley’s frontbench if the Coalition maintained its support for the 2050 net-zero carbon emissions target.
He has spoken about the possible demise of the Liberal Party if it fails to take a new direction, suggesting the party should adopt a more conservative stance regarding Australia’s immigration intake, housing and manufacturing policies.
But he has downplayed speculation he is preparing to challenge Ms Ley for the Liberal Party leadership.
“Unless we get our act together, we’re going to be potentially in further decline and perhaps one day extinct,” he stated recently.
The policies that the Coalition took to the May election saw it trounced by Labor.
In resigning on Friday, Mr Hastie said Ms Ley should remain a Liberal Party leader.
“Sussan deserves the opportunity to lead, unencumbered by interventions from shadow cabinet colleagues, especially as the Coalition builds out a policy platform for the 2028 election,” he said.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to have served as the shadow home affairs minister, and I wish Sussan and the shadow cabinet every success in this term.”
