Regardless of whether Opposition Leader Peter Dutton was going to lose his seat or not, there was always to be a leadership spill in the Liberal Party. Could Peter Duttonhave held onto his position as Opposition Leader? Possible, but unlikely probable. With Peter Dutton losing his seat in the election, this is the best outcome as he can now longer influence the party direction. Sussan will come in without the shadow of Peter Dutton in the party room, she has the opportunity to take control and lead the Liberal Party in a new direction.

Ok, so the Liberal Party requires a new leader and I suggest Sussan Ley is the best possible candidate. Yes, I have a high regard for Andrew Hastie but he did not even put his hand up for the role so he was never considered. Like Andrew holding the seat of Canning in Western Australia, Sussan holds the New South Wales regional seat of Farrer. The Liberal Party has a women problem, former leader Peter Dutton certainly had a women problem, whether real or a figment of Labor Party messaging, the perception was real so made Dutton unpopular with women. Angus Taylor speaks well, but he could also a liability if he wanted to keep the Liberal Party on the current direction.

What do we know about Sussan Ley? She was born in Nigeria as her father was working for British Intelligence before moving to Australia as a teenager. Sussan has a pilot’s licence, was a stock mustering pilot, worked as an air traffic controller, and even a shearer’s cook. Sussan studied hard and landed a senior role at the Australian Taxation Office before entering politics in 2001. Sussan has a pretty decent CV, she has broad experience and holds the Liberal Party free enterprise and small business focus.

The 2025 was a disaster for the Liberal Party, the party has become too conservative and Sussan is more centralist hopefully pulling the party back to the centre of Australian politics. The policies were poor, this is where Sussan cannot escape examination here, she already held a senior role. However, it appears Dutton was making too many leader’s decisions, known as Captain’s calls. Sussan needs to take a greater collaborative approach and that can only be a positive. I am looking forward to watching Sussan as the first female leader of the Liberal Party, it is a difficult trip back, but hopefully she keeps the Albanese Government accountable and gets the Liberal Party competitive in three years time for the 2028 federal election.