Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Hansard source

Firstly, the assertion underpinning that proposition is wrong. Mr Kelly did not threaten to resign or bring down the government. So that is No. 1. And I can indicate to the chamber, as is a matter of public record now, that the Prime Minister did take steps to support a number of incumbent members of parliament in the House of Representatives in New South Wales that were up for preselection. Given that we are getting to the pointy end of the electoral cycle, that seems like a sensible thing to do, and it is not unlike something that Mr Shorten has done on a number of occasions. Again, this is just a matter of party organisational management, and I think that Mr Morrison has demonstrated great leadership in securing the outcome that he has secured.