Matt Kean, NSW Minister for Energy and Environment ahead of the opening of the national trail walk at the Royal National Park in Bundeena, New South Wales, Australia on Sep. 14, 2019. (Jenny Evans/Getty Images)
New South Wales (NSW) state treasurer and leading Liberal Party moderate Matt Kean says the party needs to rebuild after the federal election loss by listening to the community on issues like climate, integrity and women.
The NSW treasurer says the party needs to “get back to the drawing board” after both major parties lost ground to candidates who were advocating for decisive action on climate change, an integrity agency and women’s issues.
Right-winger Peter Dutton is being touted as the frontrunner to replace Scott Morrison but Kean declined to say who was the best candidate to lead the party forward.
“That’s not a matter for me. It’s a matter of the federal party room,” Kean told ABC TV on Monday.
“But what I will say is that we need a leader who is going to be able to set a new path for the Liberal Party.”
Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton addresses the National Press Club in Canberra, Australia on Nov. 26, 2021. (AAP Image/Lukas Coch)
There was no one person to blame for the defeat but the party needed to take ownership of the result and first and foremost improve on the party’s target to deliver net-zero emissions by 2050.
“I think that we need to have a strong and decisive 2030 target,” Kean said.
“What we saw is that after the bushfires, after the floods, after the drought, that the community are seeing climate change for what it is—a generation imperative that needs strong and decisive action,” he said.
Last year the New South Wales government announced its goal to slash emissions by 50 per cent by 2030 on its way to zero emissions by 2050.
“We need to make sure that we’re putting forward policies that will see us take climate change seriously.
“We need to listen to the community and we need to respond accordingly,” he said.
“The middle ground is wanting the major parties to stand up and speak out on the issues that concern them,” he said.
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Australian Associated Press is an Australian news agency.
