Australia news live: Nationals break coalition with Liberals saying parties need ‘time apart’ after eight decades together; RBA interest rates decision today | Australia news
Liberals and Nationals taking ‘time apart’ after eight decades as a coalition
Littleproud says the National-Liberal breakup is about “taking a deep breath” and saying to the Australian people it is “time apart for us to be better”.
He is speaking live:
We have had a coalition of over 80 years and I suspect we will have one in the future. It has been broken before. What this is about is taking a deep breath and say to the Australian people this is time apart [for] us to be better, focus on them.
This is a healthy part of our democracy which should be proud of.
Key events
Andrew Cribb, NSW SES Northern Zone Commander, has issued another warning about flash flooding, of which he says more can be expected as the rainfall continues.
Cribb says:
The SES has absolutely seen unprecedented rainfall in several areas in a short amount of time. That has led [to] flash flooding, and we will continue to see that flash flooding even though the predicted rainfall rates are a little lower than what we have experienced.
The short, intense bursts of rain that we expect will create further flash flooding and risk to the residents of the areas affected. This flash is flooding is hitting the ground where it is absolutely saturated and running downhill towards the river catchments and the river tributaries which will prolong any flooding or indeed, increase the rises of those.
Heavy rain expected until Wednesday, BoM says
Steve Bernasconi, hazard preparedness and response manager for the Bureau of Meteorology, has run through the rainfall totals across parts of NSW, which range from 61mm at Gloucester to 267mm at Taree over 24 hours – including 190mm at Taree in just 6 hours.
Bernasconi says:
This is a multi-day event, a multi-day weather event that’s turned into a multi-day flood event. And it will be focused on the Hunter and the mid-north coast today and into tomorrow with the potential for rainfall to still persist along the coast into the end of the week and weekend …
I’ve been asked to explain what’s causing this. A coastal trough that’s been positioned on the coast now for a couple of days persists. And it’s positioned around about the central mid-north coast area, and it’s expected to track slowly northwards today.
That means heavy to intense rainfall is expected on the southern side of that trough through today and into Wednesday.
About 4,400 people across affected regions without power
The Swansea MP, Yasmin Catley, says Lostock dam and Glennies Creek dam are continuing to spill, and Patterson River has exceeded the major flood level.
Glenbawn dam is continuing to rise and more rain is expected. Chichester dam has peaked just 30mm short of a red alert.
A number of roads are closed across the Hunter region. About 400 people in Newcastle were without power this morning and about 4,000 on the mid-north coast.
Four evacuation centres set up in flood-hit areas
There are four evacuation centres currently operating in the region: at Wingham, Dungog, Taree and Bulahdelah, says Jihad Dib.
Alerts will go out if and when other evacuation centres are set up. Communities are being door-knocked before they are affected by flooding.
Authorities delivering update on NSW floods
The NSW emergency services minister, Jihad Dib, is speaking to media about the flooding situation in the Hunter Valley and mid-north coast.
The Upper Hunter region has seen rainfall of up to 270mm in the past 24 hours, Dib says:
That’s unusual weather. That is a lot of rain compared to what we would normally receive. We’re also seeing that spread out across the entire region. What we already know is that there are already ground is saturated. The dams are pretty full and the rivers are full, so with that, the expectation is that there will be some flooding.
There are 1,600 SES volunteers on the ground at the moment, Dib says. They have performed 24 flood rescues over the past 24 hours:
Many of those rescues, unfortunately, are as a result of people going through flood waters. I don’t know how many times I need to say this – please, do not drive through flood waters. Not only do you put yourself at risk, you put others at risk and you put them in harm’s way. We need people to be sensible. We need people to follow the instructions. We need people to be cautious.
Kevin Hogan says he hopes Nationals and Liberals get back together after time apart
Nationals deputy leader, Kevin Hogan, says he views the Coalition split like a relationship breakup that will eventually end up back together again. He hopes sooner rather than later:
Maybe we’ve all broken up in a relationship that’s been important to us, and very often, more often than not, you get back together and join back together with clearer clarity and focus on what the relationship was about and when you get back together, how it is going to work even better.
That’s how I’m viewing this. I think that it is really important for the Coalition that that happens.
We are always best as a country with a strong Coalition. I hope, my wish in the future, is that it is going to happen again sooner rather than later, but we needed to make, for us, a principled stand on things today that we could not move on.
Liberals and Nationals taking ‘time apart’ after eight decades as a coalition
Littleproud says the National-Liberal breakup is about “taking a deep breath” and saying to the Australian people it is “time apart for us to be better”.
He is speaking live:
We have had a coalition of over 80 years and I suspect we will have one in the future. It has been broken before. What this is about is taking a deep breath and say to the Australian people this is time apart [for] us to be better, focus on them.
This is a healthy part of our democracy which should be proud of.
Nationals have ‘no animosity’ towards Liberal: Littleproud
Littleproud says the decision that the Nationals will not re-enter into coalition with the Liberals was made with “no animosity”:
There is no animosity, no angst, no heat. It is predicated on respect and understanding …
The Nationals leader says this is one of the hardest political decisions of his life:
I did not make it by myself. The collective wisdom of everyone in that room today, getting to work through their lived experience of who they represent and what they [are] able to leave for them and next generations. I think our democracy is healthier for it. You’ve got 19 individual prepared to do that, to come here and get [to] the core purpose of why we are here.
Littleproud leaves door open for resuming coalition when ‘Liberals decide what they want to be’
Littleproud has been asked whether he has just made both the National and Liberal parties “irrelevant in government … purely because of numbers”. The Nationals leader says:
No, this is mature conversation that both Sussan [Ley] and I had around their need to rediscover who they are and what they want to be. I need to leave a legacy for those people that I represent, for the 30% of Australians that live outside a capital city. I don’t intend to take a step back when I take big steps forward in three years.
I think that we can and will work together when the Liberals decide what they want to be and much of the capital cities that they want to be able to be prosecuting their case in. My job [is] not to be a drag on their boat and I’ve got to say, I never saw a billboard. I never saw a piece of material from the Labor party attacking me, or the National party at the last election. The National party didn’t drag anyone’s vote down in the capital city because we’re able to focus on the things that are important to us. This is a principled position. We come here not wanting to have to scrap over every last crumb.
Liberal party ‘going on a journey of rediscovery’, Littleproud says
National’s leader David Littleproud reiterates the decision not to re-enter a coalition agreement with the Liberal party is “on a principle basis”.
He says the Liberal party are “going on a journey of rediscovery”:
It’s on a principle position of making sure that those hard-fought wins are maintained and respected, we continue to look forward. We look forward to what else we can do as a party and as part of an opposition now that we can shape the lives of regional Australians for the better.
We don’t want to have to look back and to waste energy on trying to re-prosecute the casement we should be continuing to look forward. And so, I had a respectful conversation with Sussan Ley this morning, sat down, made it very clear that we remain committed to having the door open, respecting the position that Sussan has been put in. That she is a leader that needs to rebuild the Liberal party. They are going on a journey of rediscovery, and this will provide them the opportunity to do that without the spectre of the National party imposing their will. But, setting clear boundaries, and parameters about what’s important to us – about what we achieved as a Coalition in the last three years. Building on that. Not having to look back, and to fight for things, but to actually focus on what’s important. Changing the lives of people in regional Australia – young kids in regional Australia.
David Littleproud says Nationals will not re-enter into coalition with the Liberals
Nationals leader David Littleproud says the Nationals will not be re-entering a Coalition agreement with the Liberal party.
He is speaking live:
After the discussions that both Sussan Ley and I have had over the ensuing period, our party room has got to a position where we will not be re-entering a Coalition agreement with the Liberal party after this election. What we have got to a position is that the National party will sit alone on a principle basis. On the basis of looking forward, not having to look back and to try and actually regain important policy pieces that change the lives of the people we represent.
Tom McIlroy
Nationals to make announcement on future of Coalition partnership
There is growing speculation about the future of the Coalition in Canberra this morning, amid drawn-out negotiations over a new deal between the Liberals and the Nationals.
Nationals leader David Littleproud is going to speak to the media at Parliament House at 11.45am, after a party room meeting with MPs this morning.
The party says Littleproud will make “an announcement in relation to the Coalition agreement.”
He will be accompanied by the deputy leader, Kevin Hogan, and Senate leader Bridget McKenzie.
If the Nationals don’t enter into a coalition with the Liberals, their MPs would likely not be part of the formal opposition and would not have frontbench positions.
Littleproud has met with the opposition leader, Sussan Ley, since the 3 May election but the pair have so far not signed off on the traditional written agreement which influences the shadow ministry and some policy areas.
Net zero carbon emission commitments and the opposition’s nuclear policy are key sticking points between the two sides.
Some in the Nationals say they should go their own way in this term of parliament. That sentiment has been echoed by some Liberals, including the former MP Jason Falinski, who has argued in recent days the Nationals are a drag on the Liberals pitch to inner-city voters.
We will bring you more news in the next half an hour.
