Michaelia Cash says Sussan Ley has ‘full support’ despite different stance on Welcome to Country ceremonies

WA Liberal senator Michaelia Cash has declared Sussan Ley has her “full support” as leader despite publicly calling for Welcome to Country ceremonies and Aboriginal flags to be ditched from official ceremonies — positions not held by Ms Ley.

“Sussan and I are great friends. I talk to her almost every day,” Senator Cash told The Sunday Times on Saturday.

“I think Sussan is doing a great job leading us, given in particular the devastating election loss.”

Senator Cash, the most senior Liberal in WA, supported contentious motions put to State council in Mandurah on Saturday — calling on the Federal Opposition to adopt policies which would see welcome-to-country ceremonies and Aboriginal flags to be scrapped from official events.

The motions sailed through with little objection from the 120-strong Liberal members who attended.

“Consistent with our federated structure the WA motions are expressions of grassroots democracy, not binding federal policy,” Senator Cash said.

“The motions represent debate and diversity - not contradiction.

“As our leader has said: our policies are up for review, but our values are not.”

Also supporting the motions was Ms Ley’s other senior shadow cabinet member, Canning MP Andrew Hastie, who on Saturday also denied a rift with the federal Liberal leader.

“There is no rift,” Mr Hastie said. “We are deep into Opposition.

“We got a thumping defeat back in May.

“Now is the time to affirm what we believe. We have to fight from a position of courage, not fear.”

Senator Cash said her personal views on welcome to country and Aboriginal flags at government and official ceremonies were well known.

“In relation to uniting under one national flag, this has been my long-held belief, and I have been on the public record for a very long time, saying there is one national flag, and we should all unite under it,” she said.

“On the welcome to country issue, and the acknowledgment to country issue, I believe particularly in relation to acknowledgement, that this is now overdone and has become tokenistic.

“I have always been of the fundamental belief, as are member of the WA Liberal Party, that we must focus on practical policies that will improve the lives of the most disadvantaged in this country.

“That is where we want the focus to be.”

Senator Cash did not attend State council on Saturday, but she also supported the motion calling on the Opposition to “abandon the target of net zero by 2050” — put forward by Mr Hastie’s Canning division.

“”This is a motion that clearly and articulately states the case that Australia needs cheaper, consistent but cleaner energy,” she said.

“We all know we need to reduce emissions, but we do not want to compromise the energy grid or the pickets of the Australian people in the process.”

The passing of controversial flag motions come just days before Ms Ley arrives in WA to begin a tour of Indigenous and other communities in the Kimberley.

In May, Ms Ley told journalists she was happy to stand in front of the Aboriginal flag and had no problem with welcome to country ceremonies – if they were “meaningful”.

“We should unite under the Australian flag - that’s my firm view,” Ms Ley said in May.

“Of course, I’m happy to stand in front of the Indigenous flag, and I frequently do, and I frequently have.

“With respect to welcome to country, it’s simple - if it’s meaningful, if it matters, if it resonates, them it’s in the right place.”

Motions passed at State council are not binding on the federal party.

WA Liberal leader Basil Zempilas, who attended but left before the motions were voted on, told The Sunday Times he had no problem with the Indigenous flag, or welcome to country ceremonies.

He said he believed there were far more important issues for Liberals to put their thoughts to, given the drubbings at this year’s State and Federal elections.

“My position is unchanged. As Lord Mayor for five years, I stood in front of the Australian flag, the Aboriginal flag and Torres Island flag,” Mr Zempilas said.

“I have no problem standing in front of the Aboriginal flag, anywhere, anytime, and will continue to do so.

“I have no problem with welcome to country and I understand the significance of them being performed at the appropriate occasion.

“These are not matters that West Australians are thinking about and not matters that the State Opposition is thinking about.”