Turnbull issues ETS ultimatum to partyroom
By Sandra O'MalleyThu Oct 1 21:14:30 EST 2009
Thu Oct 1 11:14:30 UTC 2009
CANBERRA, Oct 1 AAP - Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull has given his party room an ultimatum - back him on climate change or he will quit the leadership.
After weeks of backbench sniping over his decision to negotiate with the Rudd government on emissions trading, Mr Turnbull decided on Thursday to "assert his authority as leader" to regain control of his partyroom.
"I will not lead a party that is not as committed to effective action on climate change as I am," he told reporters.
But the strategy failed to unify the party room, let alone quell dissent.
Western Australian maverick Wilson Tuckey insisted he wouldn't be backed into a corner.
"I will not vote for an emissions trading scheme. I will not vote for any amendments to the scheme," Mr Tuckey told ABC radio.
He's unhappy with his leader's approach.
"Well if the leader goes into the party room and says support me or sack me, the option then for those who don't agree with his ultimatum is to find somebody else," Mr Tuckey said.
Numerous Liberal MPs and senators - including one member of shadow cabinet - were unhappy with Mr Turnbull's bold gamble, though no one else was prepared to go public.
"This was very unnecessary," one senior Liberal told AAP.
Mr Turnbull believes it was a necessary move - whatever the consequences.
"Whether my leadership prevails or not on this issue time will tell, but the fact of the matter is we cannot be a party with nothing to say," he told ABC radio.
The likelihood is that the party room will blink before the leader.
It would cause chaos for the Liberals if the party room were to flout his authority - and there are few options to replace the current leader.
Mr Turnbull knows his team is in a bind.
"I will secure the party room support," he told reporters.
"The party room will support the position that we will take, which is to negotiate amendments to the scheme."
While the coalition believes it would be better to delay legislation on an ETS until after an international meeting in Copenhagen in December, Mr Turnbull argues it is better to negotiate than give Labor the opportunity to get its scheme through without changes.
This could happen if the Senate rejects the laws for a second time in November, giving the Rudd government a trigger for an early election and the chance to bring the legislation before both houses of parliament.
Backbenchers are annoyed, too, that it has taken the coalition leadership months to finally seek their opinion about amendments to the government laws - even though Mr Turnbull signalled plans to negotiate in July.
Opposition resources spokesman Ian Macfarlane sent an email to MPs and senators on Thursday asking their opinion about what changes were needed.
The Rudd government is loving the dysfunction riddling the opposition.
Government frontbencher Anthony Albanese told reporters the coalition was in disarray.
"(This is) a rabble without a cause, that does not have any position on climate change or indeed on any of the other challenges facing the nation," he said.
"Malcolm Turnbull has had to threaten to resign in order to get his party room to take a position on the carbon pollution reduction scheme."
But Liberal deputy Julie Bishop says it is just a sign Mr Turnbull is serious about climate change.
"It demonstrates how deeply committed Malcolm is to getting a far better outcome," Ms Bishop told AAP.
