Liberal MP Andrew Hastie insists his decision to quit the frontbench is not part of an attempt to replace Sussan Ley as the federal opposition leader.
Look back at how ABC readers and other Australians responded to this live
moment.
32m agoSat 4 Oct 2025 at 1:47am
Hastie wishes to remain part of the Liberal party
Wrapping up his press conference, Hastie said he remained a proud member of the Liberal Party.
“I never said I’d quit the party, I said I’d leave the frontbench. I’ve left the frontbench,” he said.
“A narrative that built up was incorrect.
“I’m a proud member of the Liberal Party. I was only elected into the seat of Canning on the Liberal Party platform, and I wish to remain part of the Liberal Party. “
34m agoSat 4 Oct 2025 at 1:45am
Hastie didn’t consult widely before resigning
The former shadow minister for home affairs says he didn’t consult widely for this decision to resign.
“I’m not going to go into other conversations that I might have had, suffice to say, I didn’t consult widely,” he said.
“My objective was not to create any sort of instability for Susan.
“I wanted to do this orderly and in a respectful manner and I think that’s what I’ve done so far. “
35m agoSat 4 Oct 2025 at 1:43am
Hastie says ‘no scuttlebutt here’ with Ley
Asked why he had not met with Sussan Ley before his resignation from the front bench, Hastie said he was on leave.
“I had some leave earlier in the week, I had a bit of a medical procedure myself but I won’t go into detail,” he said.
“I was just busy on school holidays with my kids, recovering and she knew I was on leave, so there’s no scuttlebutt here.”
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The Western Australian MP announced his resignation as shadow home affairs minister late on Friday, citing a disagreement over immigration policy.
He had previously declared his desire to one day lead the Liberal Party, however, he told reporters in Perth on Saturday that he supported Ms Ley and was not challenging to replace her.
Instead, he said he quit the frontbench because Ms Ley made it clear he would not play a leading role in developing the Coalition’s immigration policy.
Andrew Hastie says his decision to leave the frontbench is not a challenge to Sussan Ley. (AAP: James Ross)
“Immigration is a core responsibility of home affairs, and so when it was made clear I wouldn’t have any leadership in that role, I thought it was time for me to depart.”
Mr Hastie said he believed the Coalition could win the next election by appealing to “regular mainstream Australians” who were frustrated by immigration levels and housing pressures.
Andrew Hastie wants to be Liberal leader. The question is when
“Immigration is out of control. Not enough houses are being built. People are feeling the pressures in the cities so I think there is a pathway to victory,” he said.
“We’re also going through a period of renewal as a party and I want to be able to speak up on issues that I care about, and in order to uphold the principle of cabinet solidarity, I had to step back.”
The Coalition is yet to announce a migration policy.
However, Mr Hastie’s resignation is the latest headache for Ms Ley surrounding the issue.
Last month, she demoted Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price after the outspoken Northern Territory senator refused to apologise for offensive remarks about Indian migrants and refused to endorse Ms Ley’s leadership.