Tony Abbott has put a question mark over whether Liberal party reform in New South Wales will succeed, declaring there has been a “stitch-up” in the state for too long.
In a television interview on Wednesday night, the former prime minister acknowledged there was an agreement “from Malcolm Turnbull and Mike Baird down” to have plebiscites for preselections in the state.
But he cautioned it was not a done deal. “Let’s see what happens,” Abbott told the ABC on Wednesday night.
“With all of those people supporting it, it certainly should go through – but never underestimate the power of inertia and unfortunately in NSW, never underestimate the power of factions as well.”
“There’s been a stitch-up, a stitch-up in NSW for too long.”
In addition to his remarks on the ABC, Abbott also raised party reform in the Liberal party room this week for the second time in a fortnight.
This week, Abbott thanked Turnbull for showing leadership on the issue. The week before Abbott took on the prime minister, and tussled with other colleagues, before being slapped down by the defence industry minister, Christopher Pyne, for raising state organisational issues in Canberra.
Turnbull is expected to support a motion to the NSW Liberal state council from Abbott’s Warringah branch which could open up preselections to ordinary members for all federal and NSW candidates.
The council meets on Saturday.
But the reform is being opposed by prominent members of Turnbull’s moderate faction in his home state, and some sources suggest Turnbull is not fully on board with the Abbott proposal.
Last Sunday, the cabinet secretary and significant Turnbull ally Arthur Sinodinos said he supported a statewide division vote on the reforms and he urged the party to speed up the reform process.
Sinodinos said putting the issue to a statewide vote would ensure any changes would “stick”.
