Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said opposition leader Sussan Ley has been “undermined” as Ley said she had confidence in the continued leadership.
However, Nationals leader David Littleproud had made it clear this week that the Nationals would not return to the coalition if Ley was still leader.
The National Party announced on Wednesday that it would completely quit the shadow cabinet, after Ley accepted the resignation of three National MPs on Tuesday over the new hate speech law.
The coalition has split for the second time since the May 2025 federal election, following the passing of the Hate Speech Bill on Tuesday, when the Nationals crossed the floor and voted against the bill.
When asked by ABC Radio Perth about the split, Albanese said he has “no more worries about what’s happening”.
“Yes, Susan Ley has been undermined. The first female leader of the Liberal Party was undermined from day one and the alternative leaders are even worse,” he said on Friday.
Albanese also expects more Coalition MPs to defect to One Nation, following the example of former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce.
“I’ll let them announce that, but I think it’s pretty clear from the behavior that’s occurred in Parliament this week that at least one more will go away,” he said.
Ley says her door is open to Nationals
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley says her door is open for the Nationals to rejoin the Coalition after being accused by Nationals leader Littleproud of breaking up the Coalition.
Ley said she was also confident she would remain leader of the Liberal Party.
“The Liberal Party stood for two principles this week, the principle of which is that we must dismantle the Nazis and deport radical Islamic extremists,” Ley told Channel Nine’s Today show on Friday.
“We have improved labor laws to do just that and I am proud of that.
“…the coalition is stronger together. The door is open from my point of view, but I don’t look at the door.”
Littleproud accuses Ley of violating solidarity in the shadow cabinet
Also speaking on the Today show, Littleproud said there is no “normal coalition process” to discuss the now-passed hate speech bill.
He said there was no joint party space to put forward their position prior to the vote.
“Normally the process is that the shadow cabinet would see the bill in full, it would debate that bill, it would then go to a joint party room where the collective wisdom of both the Liberal Party and the National Party would come together to debate it, and to come to a position,” he said.
“We were not allowed to have those forums.”
Littleproud also said the Nationals had respected Ley’s instruction not to vote against the bill when it was before the House of Representatives.
After the three National MPs spoke in the Senate, Littleproud said they had resigned “out of respect”, but also made it clear that if Ley accepted the resignation, the entire National Party would also quit the shadow cabinet.
He said the National Party had given the Liberal Party “every opportunity”.
“We committed ourselves to the coalition but were let down again,” Littleproud said.
“Sussan Ley broke the coalition when she accepted those three resignations.”
Littleproud said his door was still open to the Liberal Party, but his party would not rush through matters.
“Our door is open, but the reality is I think it’s healthy to be apart for a while so they can figure out who they are.”
‘It doesn’t look good’
Opposition communications spokeswoman Melissa McIntosh told Sky News that Australians were “quite unhappy” with the coalition.
“We ended the week talking about ourselves again, which is very disappointing.
“It doesn’t look good… Our marriage has broken down twice in one year. I am a coalition party and I really value the relationship.
“I know we’re bleeding votes… The reason we’re doing that is what’s happening right now.”
However, she said she ultimately supports Ley’s leadership.
Speaking to ABC radio, senior Liberals – including Deputy Leader Ted O’Brien and Shadow Health Minister Anne Ruston – backed Ley’s leadership.
O’Brien said he remained hopeful the two sides would reunite, but admitted he could not know “how long it will take”.
Nationals senator Matt Canavan said he still couldn’t “understand” why the Liberals would vote for the hate speech laws without amendments proposed by the Nationals.
“I don’t think we should have a law in this country where a government could convict you of a hate crime just because you boycott economic products, which could happen under this law,” he told the Today show on Friday.
Former Nationals-and-Liberal senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price told Sky News on Thursday the Coalition had made “a big mistake” over their response to the Bondi terror attack, where they urged Labor to recall Parliament earlier to pass laws.
“I don’t think we should have recalled Parliament as quickly as we did.”
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