⛔“It was an acknowledgement of prσfσund wrσngs…” — Sussan Ley makes her first public comments since the bσmbshell move against her Liberal leadership, as a showdown date is set 😱

Sussan Ley has delivered her first speech since Angus Taylor resigned from the Shadow Cabinet, presenting the Coalition’s formal response to the Albanese Government following the tabling of the latest Closing the Gap report.

‘The Apology delivered in this Parliament 18 years ago was an important moment in Australia’s story, and I was privileged to be here in the chamber,’ she said.

‘It was an acknowledgement of profound wrongs – the forced removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, communities and cultures – and of the enduring pain that those policies caused.

‘For many survivors and their families, the Apology mattered because it said plainly and publicly: we were wrong.

‘An apology, however important, is not an end point. It must be matched by sustained action, by honesty about outcomes, and by a shared commitment to do better.’

Ley has not taken questions from the media today amid the fallout from a series of Shadow Cabinet resignations.

She will return to the chamber for Question Time at 2pm.

It is understood several additional lower house Shadow ministers will resign following Question Time’s conclusion.

The Liberal Party will convene at 9am on Friday, where MPs will vote on a spill motion against Opposition Leader Sussan Ley.

NSW Senator Jess Collins, a known ally of Angus Taylor, is understood to be the one moving the motion to reopen the leadership.

According to Liberal sources, the final vote is tipped to be razor‑thin, with internal estimates suggesting the result could be decided by as few as three or four votes.

Angus Taylor and Sussan Ley are pictured on Wednesday

Former Howard Government minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs Amanda Vanstone has taken aim at Angus Taylor, following the launch of his leadership campaign.

In a post on X, Vanstone, a moderate and former Liberal South Australian senator, criticised Taylor’s performance during his tenure as Shadow Treasurer.

‘Angus Taylor. Shadow Treasurer [from] 2022 to 2025. He says [Liberals] haven’t held government to account,’ she said.

‘What’s his explanation for his failure?’

Ley’s allies have been reminding colleagues of Taylor’s record in the portfolio as they push internally for her to remain leader.

They argue he failed to articulate a coherent economic narrative heading into the 2025 election, a shortcoming they say contributed to the party’s catastrophic defeat.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers launched a blistering attack on Angus Taylor during Question Time, linking the Liberal leadership contender to what he described as the Coalition’s economic ‘incompetence’.

Chalmers argued that Taylor’s own record undermined his leadership credentials.

‘It was the Member for Hume himself who said “the best indicator of future performance is past performance” – that should send a shiver up every Liberal and Australian,’ Chalmers told the House.

He accused Taylor of presiding over economic failure in opposition.

‘That sense of entitlement that defines the Member for Hume is only matched by the cloud of incompetence which surrounds him,’ he said.

Chalmers also mocked Senator James Paterson’s praise of Taylor as the ‘smartest policy brain in the shadow cabinet’.

‘I’m not sure that Senator Paterson was being especially helpful… you don’t know what is more worrying, that it is false or that it might be true,’ he said.

‘They can rearrange the chairs all they like, but it will still be a three‑ring circus.’

Sussan Ley has arrived for what could be her final Question Time as Opposition Leader as Anthony Albanese accused the Liberals of only thinking about themselves.

Labor moved quickly to capitalise on the Liberals’ internal tensions, with backbencher Jo Briskey using a Dorothy Dixer to set up a question for the Prime Minister about ‘leadership’.

‘While we are building more homes for Australians, those opposite are busy tearing down their own home,’ Albanese said.

He then took aim at the launch of Angus Taylor’s leadership campaign.

‘Because it goes to the core values, and we have seen that with the extraordinary launch of a leadership campaign that did not have a single new policy idea. It was just the vibe. There, not a single new idea.’

‘I was waiting for their leadership candidate to say vote me and I support world peace. That was the substance that was in there.’

Albanese argued it made little difference who ultimately led the Liberals.

‘Because, essentially they all agree. They all agree, not with looking after Australians but just with themselves and it does not matter who sits in that chair, the problem is that the leader will just be another Liberal.’

Angus Taylor has delivered a speech in Parliament ahead of Question Time, in what appeared to be part of his broader pitch for the Liberal leadership.

Taylor argued there was ‘no light at the end of the tunnel’ for Australians under the current Labor Government.

‘It’s too hard to buy a home, it’s too hard to start a business, it’s too hard to start a family and it is too hard to access basic services,’ he said.

‘This is a great country… but for too many Australians it doesn’t feel like it.

‘The basic promise that if you work hard and you’ll do the right thing, you will get ahead… seems broken.’

‘And our economy has hit a speed limit that is painfully slow.’

Taylor went on to outline his priorities for the Liberal Party.

‘Our Liberal priorities will be to protect our way of life and restore our standard of living that has been trashed under Labor.’

‘Every day Australians are making hard choices because this Prime Minister has failed to make those choices.’

‘We need less government, less spending, less taxing, less regulation and less regulators.’

‘Australians need change and Australia is worth fighting for.’

Sussan Ley’s leadership isn’t the only role under scrutiny ahead of Friday’s Liberal Party room meeting, with several MPs weighing a tilt at the deputy leadership.

Victorian MP Zoe McKenzie and Senator Jane Hume, both regarded as moderates, are emerging as the frontrunners.

McKenzie is increasingly seen as the favourite, viewed by colleagues as part of a newer generation within the party.

Hume, meawhile, faces criticism over her advocacy for her work‑from‑home policy, which detractors argue damaged the Liberals during the 2025 election.

Others point to remarks she made referring to Labor campaigners as “Chinese spies,” which caused major backlash from Chinese communities in key seats.

Current deputy leader Ted O’Brien is also expected to recontest the role.

A number of MPs have been floated, including Goldstein MP Tim Wilson and Lindsay MP Melissa McIntosh, though both are considered unlikely contenders.

James Paterson has addressed the media after resigning from the Shadow Cabinet, to outline why he is no longer backing Sussan Ley as party leader.

‘It’s something I did not do lightly, something I did with a heavy heart,’ he told reporters in Canberra on Thursday.

He praised Ley personally but argued her leadership had failed to keep the party on course.

‘Sussan Ley is a decent person, a good Liberal. She has been dealt many tough hands in the last nine months. But I no longer have confidence in her ability to turn this ship around to get our party back on track before the next election,’ he said.

Paterson said this loss of confidence meant he would now back Angus Taylor as leader, delivering a strong endorsement.

‘If that is successful, I will vote for Taylor as leader. Angus is the smartest policy brain in the shadow cabinet, a man of integrity and courage and values,’ he said.

‘Most importantly, Angus understands this is a change-or-die moment for the Liberal Party. We must change or we will not continue to exist.’

James Paterson is pictured addressing media on Thursday

Paterson acknowledged that party renewal would not come quickly.

‘This will not be easy, nor will it be very quick in restoring the Liberal Party’s vote. But now a third of voters have left us. It is very clear the only way we can earn their support back is to show them we have changed,’ he said.

He also dismissed arguments that removing Ley, the party’s first federal female leader, would damage the Liberal brand with voters.

‘My observation would be that argument was not successful for Julia Gillard in the Labor Party, and I do not believe it will be successful for Sussan Ley. Political leaders are judged on their performance and not on their agenda.’

Paterson pointed to poor polling as evidence new leadership was required.

‘I think it is clear what the verdict on her leadership is. She is at –39 personal rating, the worst performance of an Opposition Leader in 23 years,’ he said.

‘You have to go back to 2003 and Simon Crean to find an Opposition Leader performing so badly.’

‘Sometimes they can recover from opinion polls, but it is difficult for Opposition leaders to do so.’

Australia’s youngest-ever senator Charlotte Walker has taken a brutal swipe at the Liberal Party’s spiralling internal chaos, saving her harshest hit for Angus Taylor.

The 21‑year‑old Labor Senator said Taylor was a ‘dud’ in a fiery Instagram video.

‘I have not been in federal parliament for long, but what I can tell you already is that Angus Taylor is a dud,’ she said.

The clip then abruptly cuts to the iconic Curb Your Enthusiasm theme.

In the comments section of her own post, the senator added another jab, writing: ‘Fantastic. Great move. Well done Angus’.

The line was a clear reference to a self-congratulatory comment Taylor once accidentally posted from his official account, a gaffe that has become infamous.

‘Oops sorry forgot I was on my own account,’ Walker wrote.

Walker took a more serious tone about the saga in a statement to Daily Mail.

‘I’m no fan of Sussan Ley, but it is disheartening to see the Liberals undermine their first female leader from Day One,’ Walker said.

‘Some of the conduct we’re seeing from the Liberals, including the blokes meeting to scheme before the funeral of their female former colleague, risks pushing away young women from getting into politics.’

Walker criticised her Liberal counterparts for focusing more time on party infighting than Senate Estimates, which has ongoing since Monday.

‘As Government Senators, we’re in Estimates this week working for the Australian people and asking questions of department officials,’ she said.

‘Instead of the Liberals doing their job, they’ve only been focused on themselves, walking up and down the corridors, on their phones, doing the numbers for Angus Taylor.’

Meanwhile, Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen has questioned whether a promotional video Taylor shared to social media earlier on Thursday was pre-recorded, writing: ‘Doesn’t look like this was filmed today Angus?’

Another viewer chimed in, writing: ‘How many days ago did you film that?’

‘I like you Angus, but this speech sounds like it was written by Chat GPT,’ a third said.

Northern Territory Liberal Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price has thrown her support behind Angus Taylor, declaring: ‘I’m backing Angus for leader’ in a social media post .

Price was originally poised to run as Taylor’s deputy when he lost the first leadership ballot against Sussan Ley in 2025, following the Coalition’s electoral wipeout under Peter Dutton.

However, she withdrew before the party room ballot took place.

She is not expected to nominate for the deputy leadership in the upcoming spill, despite her public support for Taylor’s bid.

Jacinta Nampijinpa Price is pictured in July, 2025.

South Australian Senator Leah Blyth, considered a pivotal vote for Angus Taylor, has been instructed by Taylor and his backers to return to Canberra after she travelled home to Adelaide late last night.

A Coalition source told Daily Mail that Blyth’s brief departure underscored the ‘shambles’ inside Taylor’s leadership push.

With the ballot expected to be determined by just two or three votes, Blyth is viewed as essential to Taylor’s effort to topple Sussan Ley.

Meanwhile, WA Liberal Senator Matt O’Sullivan has released a statement following his resignation from the shadow ministry.

O’Sullivan, who attended a meeting of conservative Liberals earlier this month to discuss who might challenge Ley, said the decision weighed heavily on him.

‘However, I have reached the view that the Coalition currently lacks the policy clarity, leadership and strategic direction required to rebuild trust with voters and present a compelling alternative government,’ he said.

He added that the party’s current direction risked leaving Australians feeling further disconnected.

‘If we are to rebuild trust and reconnect with the millions of Australians who feel increasingly disengaged and left behind, our party must chart a different course.’

Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has delivered a subtle swipe at her federal colleagues, urging them to ‘get on with it and resolve it quickly’ as questions over the leadership crisis continue to swirl in Canberra.

Wilson declined to engage further on the turmoil, brushing off repeated questions — including whether Victorians would back Angus Taylor.

‘I will leave that up to Victorians, that’s for them to make their mind up about. What I am focused on is my job as the alternative premier and putting our vision to Victorians,’ she told Sky News.

‘I am not focused on the feds, I encourage them to resolve it.’