Trent Zimmerman has conceded it is likely the state party will vote to allow plebiscites in preselection – but it will still have to pass the state executive

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Former Liberal state president Trent Zimmerman has conceded that the NSW party is headed towards changing its rules to allow members a say on preselection of candidates but has urged delegates to compromise on the process.

Since losing the leadership Tony Abbott has been one of the most vocal supporters of the Warringah motion – a proposal to allow members a vote in their local preselection of candidates and office bearers.

Asked whether he accepted there would be plebiscites in the Liberal party by the end of this weekend’s state Liberal convention, Zimmerman said: “I think that that is where the party is heading”.

But he urged the 1,500 members registered to attend to be prepared to compromise. Rival groups have prepared alternative proposals in a bid to knock off the Warringah motion.

The two rival motions are proposed by Liberal backbencher Julian Leeser and assistant immigration minister, Alex Hawke. They both propose eligibility rules such as activity tests, waiting periods and protections for all existing sitting MPs.

“Every delegate has to be prepared to look at reasonable compromise,” Zimmerman said.

“We have to ensure that those participating in preselections are genuine and active members because we don’t want to see the system rigged.

“We don’t want to see preselections being determined by people whose bona fides we just simply don’t know. That’s at the heart of what Julian Leeser and Alex Hawke have proposed.”

The battlelines have been drawn for the extraordinary Futures convention over preselection rules after a six year campaign by former member John Ruddick and Abbott’s Warringah federal electorate conference president Walter Villatora.

If the rules changed, it is likely the moderate faction would lose control of preselections and the party’s ruling body, the state executive, to the Liberal party’s more conservative ordinary membership.

The Warringah supporters emailed members on Thursday night, claiming speakers pushing their cause included ethicist Simon Longstaff, of the St James Ethics Centre, Marcus Bastiaan, of the Victorian Liberal state executive and Dallas McInerney, president of the Whitlam federal electorate conference. McInerney is also head of government relations for the National Australia Bank.

Speaking in favour of a compromise are the federal urban infrastructure minister Paul Fletcher, NSW Liberal MLC Peter Phelps and Hills Shire mayor Yvonne Keane.

NSW Liberals members call for reform saying party has 'culture of rorts' Read more

But even if the Warringah passes at the convention, it would still need to pass the party’s ruling body, the state executive, which has resisted plebiscites to date.



Malcolm Turnbull has spoken in favour of more open preselections but has been careful not to express a preference for which model while Abbott has pushed the Warringah motion since he lost the leadership.



On Thursday, Scott Morrison also supported democratisation of his state’s preselection rules but would not commit to how it should be done.

Asked if he supported plebiscites in which ordinary members get a vote in preselection of candidates, Morrison said: “I’ve always been in favour of democratisation in the Liberal party, wherever it is.”

Speaking ahead of the NSW Liberal futures convention on the weekend, Morrison said as a former director of the party in NSW it was a decision for the members.

“I don’t think it’s my job, as a parliamentary member of the Liberal party, to be going round lecturing the organisational wing about how it should be done. That’s a matter for our organisation.

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“I’m a fierce defender of the organisational wing of the Liberal party to make its decisions on the issues that are within its domain.”

Both the prime minister and NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, will speak at the convention at Rosehill racecourse on Saturday before debates on motions over the preselection rules on Sunday.

The lead-up to the event has been marked by claim and counter-claim, as a war has broken out between supporters of the Warringah motion and its opponents, who say open preselections would lead to branch stacking.

Warringah motion supporters such as retired major general Jim Molan and Villatora, have described their state division as infected with a culture of rorts and lobbyists, and Ruddick has predicted the party will split unless open plebiscites are introduced.

There are some 1,500 members registered for the convention which itself has become tainted by accusations of stacking after Fairfax reported 200 registrations had been paid for by Warringah motion supporters. This has been denied by some Warringah supporters, who told Guardian Australia only 20 registrations were covered for “hardship cases”.

It is within the rules to pay for multiple memberships. A senior Liberal source told Guardian Australia that one credit card had funded 100 registrations.

The claims have flourished because NSW Liberal rules do not allow ordinary members to speak on party organisational matters. But earlier this week, Molan deliberately flouted the rules after he was interviewed by broadcaster Alan Jones about plebiscites.