The NSW Liberal leader has denied he was warned about a looming problem with paperwork for the party’s nominations in upcoming council elections after more than 100 candidates were left stranded.
Mark Speakman was responding to reports that senior Liberal Anthony Roberts had asked for updates on the process several times.
According to The Daily Telegraph, citing an unnamed source, Roberts warned Speakman’s colleague, MP Mark Coure, “we’re heading for an iceberg”.
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“I don’t recall the iceberg comment,” Speakman told Sydney radio 2GB on Tuesday, before adding that he was “hamstrung” on what he could say about internal matters.
“But I don’t want any misinformation out there.”
However, Speakman confirmed there was “concern right across the party” about delays in endorsing candidates ahead of statewide local elections in September.
Last week, the NSW Liberal Party failed to lodge paperwork with the NSW Electoral Commission for one in every three endorsed candidates, totalling about 140.
It means dozens of incumbent Liberal councillors and many more candidates won’t be able to run, leaving voters in eight council areas without a Liberal candidate option on their ballot paper.
Speakman also said ex-Liberal state director Richard Shields, who was sacked in the wake of the error, was the person who had to sign the lodgement forms, adding it was a “basic operational task”.
Asked if he stood by the party’s state president, Don Harwin, Speakman said “I like Don … he’s not a dope, he’s a very intelligent human being”.
The party’s own-goal has reportedly prompted federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton to consider a takeover of the NSW branch to right the ship ahead of the 2025 federal election.
On Monday, Speakman said he had spoken with his federal counterpart and understood Dutton’s desire for the state branch’s campaign capacity to be “in tip-top shape”.
“(But) it’s premature at the moment,” he said of a federal intervention.
“I do support investigating very thoroughly … this campaign capacity.”
The NSW Liberal Party on Monday promised to leave no stone unturned to get candidates onto the September 14 ballots, and is considering last-ditch legal action against the NSW Electoral Commission.
More than four million people are expected to vote for more than 1000 councillors in the elections.
The commission on Sunday said reopening nominations would not be appropriate and would have very serious ramifications for the conduct of the elections.
NSW Labor Premier Chris Minns has knocked back calls to step in, and underlined the commission’s independence.
