Deputy Nationals leader blames Liberals for likely senate seat loss

The deputy Nationals leader has blamed the Liberals for the likely loss of her NSW senate seat, putting tensions within the Coalition on full display in the wake of Saturday’s federal election.

Perin Davey was poised to lose her seat to Labor on Tuesday morning.

It would make her the only Nationals incumbent to be booted out of parliament in the federal election — a stark contrast to the Liberals, which had its senior ranks decimated by Labor’s landslide win.

Senator Davey, who has held her seat since 2019, put her probable loss down to running on a joint Senate ticket with the Liberals.

“It’s not based on a loss in the National Party vote,” she told the ABC.

“My loss will be based entirely on people not wanting to vote for the Liberals because of our agreement with the Liberals that on this cycle the Nationals position falls to the third spot on the Senate ticket, which is the most at-risk spot.”

Senator Davey also echoed calls from fellow Nationals for her party to have a bigger say in the Coalition moving forward.

Following the vote, David Littleproud admitted he was not consulted on the controversial work-from-home policy before opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume announced it.

The Nationals Leader said it “was talked about (it) broadly, but the extent and how far it went was another matter”.

The policy – which would have scrapped work from home arrangements for public servants – was championed by Senator Hume and Peter Dutton, who lost his seat of Dickson after holding it for 24 years.

But they abandoned the pitch mid-campaign after data revealed it was not playing well with voters.

The blunder has been named a key reason for Saturday’s results.