The West Australian Liberals have a blueprint for their political return, but will it work? – ABC News
The West AustralianLiberals have been in a death spiral for years.
Their return from the political wilderness in 2025 needs a team of quality candidates who can sell voters on their vision.
However, their self-described humiliation at the last election has left a shattered party, and people who might otherwise put their hands up to run, instead keeping the Liberals at arms' length.
They need something to break that cycle, and in an intimate event on Thursdaynight they unveiled the plan they hope will do just that.
So will it?
The relatively brief gathering at the party's WA headquarters was headlined by federal Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor and Senator Linda Reynolds, who unveiled "Blueprint 2025".
It's another way the party is trying to present better candidates at state and federal polls which could be held within weeks of each other in 2025, after also voting last year to overhaul its pre-selection process.
"We are listening and we have been listening now for over a year. And we are now addressing the very crystal clear messages that West Australian voters have been shouting at us for quite some time," Senator Reynolds told the crowd, packed into Liberal Party HQ.
The blueprint comes in three parts: a 12-month training course to prepare candidates for the rigours of election campaigning, a program to train young Liberals to help run election campaigns, and another to equip grassroots members to play a greater role in the party.
"There is nothing quite like two impending elections within months of each other, particularly when we will be fielding the most non-incumbent candidates we ever have in a single election. That really does focus our minds," Reynolds said.
In his address, Taylor a New South Wales MP in town for the week acknowledged the party had been on the backfoot in recent elections, and pointed to the need for local candidates better connected to their communities.
"We've gone through a tough trot here and around Australia, and we're going through that in New South Wales at the moment, but I know the way out is to identify those great people, given them the opportunity to do great things, and they will," he said.
Before dealing with any of the other challenges, identifying those "great people" is the first that needs to be addressed.
And it's far from a new one.
Liberals have long complained thatthe lack of a pipeline of strong candidates dates back to the years of the Barnett government, with little action taken in the years since.
Those issues contributed to multiple controversies in 2021, including one in which a candidatequestioned the timing of historic rape allegations against Christian Porterwhich Mr Porter has strenuously denied and another in which thecandidatesuggested a link between 5G and COVID-19.
It's hoped that together with the pre-selection changes designed to take power away from powerbrokers, the Liberals will be able to attract good candidates, nurture them through the process, and have them chosen to run in winnable seats, avoiding any further embarrassing candidate blunders.
That cohort will also be expected to be more diverse than ever before, with the 2021 election post-morterm describing the party's representation as "inadequate" and "detrimental to the full potential of the party".
It's hoped the blueprint will give more people the confidence to run, and convince those on the fence thatputting their hands up won't be a waste of time.
"It is a difficult sell, when you've been humbled by the people of Western Australia," WA federal Liberal leader Michaelia Cash accepted this week.
"We listened, we learned, we picked ourselves up and we knew that we had to change and that is exactly what we have done."
Blueprint 2025 as some in the party acknowledge is a potential solution to just one part of a much broader laundry list of issues for the Liberals to solve.
The party'ssuccess will depend on other factors too,particularlythe policies it presents.
At its best, the blueprint will help candidates present the party, its policies and values in the best light possible.
But at its worst, it could make any shortcomings in those areas even more obvious.
The level of confidence within the party that change is happeningquickly enough varies.
Most have all but accepted that short of a miracle, it will be impossible to form government in 2025.
Instead they're hoping to use the poll as a stepping stone to a potential return in 2029.
Underlying that is a subdued optimism that things are moving in the right direction, albeit a bit slower than some might like to see.
If the party is to have learnt anything though, there's one line from its election review that would have to be ringing in the ears of all involved.
"A recovery in the fortunes of the party is by no means assured and will depend on the work done to reform it as an organisation," former party president Danielle Blain and past vice president Mark Trowell wrote.
It's up to the Liberals' members to decide which fork in the road they choose.
And no blueprint can help with that decision.
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The West Australian Liberals have a blueprint for their political return, but will it work? - ABC News
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