First leading lady Sussan Ley puts Liberal Party in listening mode

Political veteran Sussan Ley on Tuesday made history to become the first female leader of the Federal Liberal Party, pledging to rebuild it from the ashes of a humiliating election defeat to reflect and respect modern Australia.

Ms Ley, who was elected by the Liberal party room by 29 votes to 25 for her main challenger and shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, said the party would be in listening mode as it carried out a major review to understand its failure to connect with voters.

There would be “no captain’s calls” on major issues including energy policy and the commitment to net zero by 2050, and the party would work through “every single issue,” to “take the time to get it right” after letting the Australian people down, she said.

The Liberals, in particular, had to re-engage with alienated female voters, admitted Ms Ley.

“There is no doubt, and it is true, that the numbers of women who are supporting us is declining, and I want to draw a line under that. I don’t want to see that decline for one more day,” she said, adding that the Liberals also needed more women in the party room.

Ms Ley declined to back gender quotas and said while her own elevation “does send a signal to the women of Australia,” that her agenda was much wider.

Despite the Coalition’s long mea culpa over a result that — at the last count — saw just 42 members elected to Labor’s 93, she declared she was “up for the job” to lead a “strong Opposition” to hold the Government to account.

“I know at the next election we will have a competitive policy offering,” she said, promising to also deliver a “new economic narrative”.

Ms Ley, 63, a former minister for health, aged care and environment, had been deputy to Peter Dutton for three years before his shock ousting by Labor’s Ali France from his seat of Dickson in the May 3 poll.

Coalition energy spokesman Ted O’Brien will now fill the deputy’s shoes after winning a 38-16 contest against Phil Thompson.

In a 40-minute press conference following the close-run vote, both repeatedly stressed party unity that would harness the wide-ranging talents of “every single person” to reformulate a policy offering to “meet Australians where they are”.

They also drew on anecdotes from their family life and work history as they presented their credentials as new party leaders and to the voting public.

Mr O’Brien said being the youngest of nine had given him a “sense of team” while referring to his own children as his political motivation to create a “prosperous, strong, fiercely independent” Australia.

Ms Ley spoke at length about her own history as an immigrant from the UK and hard graft on the family farm as a mother-of-three, through “tough” years that many Australians could relate to, before gaining three finance degrees.

She revealed the sad news that her own mother Angela Braybrooks was now undergoing end-of-life care, paying tribute to the values of “resilience” and “self-reliance” she had passed on from growing up in wartime Britain.

The new leadership team may have been aiming for a personal, human touch that Coalition critics said was lacking from its Federal election campaign, but they face a mountain ahead as they reset policies, particularly on contentious issues like the country’s energy future.

Ms Ley was pressed on whether the Coalition would drop its aim to introduce nuclear energy and stick by its commitment to reach the global net zero target by 2050 but refused to be drawn on any defining policy announcements before extensive consultation.

“Unsurprisingly, in our party, there are many different views, and we will listen and take the positions we need to,” she said, denying there would be a “climate war” between the Liberals and Nationals over net zero.

Ms Ley underscored the need to reduce emissions and for Australia to play its part but said that “we have to recognise that we need a strong country that is committed to a manufacturing base that relies on cheap, reliable energy”.

She added that, “we have to get energy policy as a whole right,” to avoid crashing the energy grid or a backwards step for sovereign manufacturing capability.

She also rejected the suggestion her election had pitted conservative against progressive factions, stressing the Liberals reflected a welcome range of views from all walks of life.

“But I do believe the government is ultimately formed in a sensible centre,” she said.

Although 25 of her colleagues voted for rival Mr Taylor, Liberals exiting the party room after the ballot were also keen to talk up party unity and stability and the need to rally behind the new leadership duo.

“One thing the Australian people will not cop is a disunified Opposition,” warned Queensland MP Andrew Wallace, praising Ms Ley’s 24-year stint in parliament. He later revealed he had voted for her over Mr Taylor.

Mr Wallace, a strong supporter of Israel, addressed the information circulated by some opponents ahead of the secret ballot about Ms Ley’s past strong support for Palestine, saying she “has seen the light on Israel in recent years”.

Asked about her views on the Middle East, Ms Ley said “the hideous events of October 7” had changed her thinking, expressing her wish for a Palestinian leadership that did not let down its people and was interested in peace.

She turned her ire on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, calling his approach to Jewish Australians “one of the biggest threats to social cohesion” and highlighting the community’s “sense of isolation and fear.”

While several Liberals offered support for Ms Ley’s new role immediately after the vote, competitor Angus Taylor chose to issue his congratulations for a “milestone” win in a later statement.

He said he would “contribute the best way I can to help get us back in the fight,” while urging the Liberals to do more to show it was the “best party to support aspiration, economic opportunity, and the Australian dream”.

Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, who last week defected from the Nationals to run on a ticket with Mr Taylor, did not end up contesting the ballot for deputy after his defeat.

“While the outcome today is not the one that I would have wanted, it in no way lessens my commitment to the Liberal Party and the broader Coalition,” Ms Price said.

Ms Ley said she had welcomed the “talented” Ms Price into the party room with a “big hug”.