Nationals resign LIVE updates: Coalition in crisis as National MPs quit frontbench en masse after Littleproud’s bombshell letter to Sussan Ley

At the Midwinter Ball in August, Sussan Ley was trying to be funny.

Off the record and among peers, the opposition leader spoke about the quiet grind of her early leadership battles. The Nationals came in for some ribbing.

“The PM has decided he can solve peace in the Middle East. If you need a hand negotiating with fundamentalists, I’m available. After all, I’m in coalition with the National Party,” she joked.

It landed as gallows humour. But it also hinted at a reality Ley now has to manage in full view: a Coalition that demands constant negotiation, and a relationship dominated not by harmony but by defiance.

Read Rob Harris’ full analysis here.

The Coalition is in tatters after Nationals leader David Littleproud and all the party’s frontbenchers joined three rebel senators in quitting their positions after they broke shadow cabinet solidarity, following through with a bombshell threat he made to Opposition Leader Sussan Ley on a day of high drama.

Triggering one of the biggest crises in conservative politics for a generation, Littleproud and 10 Nationals frontbenchers quit Ley’s frontbench on Wednesday evening, after she had accepted the resignations of three Nationals earlier in the day.

Hours after Littleproud made his call, Ley released a statement saying she was trying to persuade him to change his mind. “This evening, I spoke with leader of the Nationals, David Littleproud, and strongly urged him not to walk away from the Coalition,” she said in a statement.

“I have received additional offers of resignation from National Party shadow ministers, which I and my Liberal leadership group have determined are unnecessary.”

Read the full story of yesterday’s turmoil here.

Good morning.

It’s Thursday, January 22.

I’m Lachlan Abbott, and I’ll be anchoring our rolling coverage of political turmoil in the federal Coalition this morning.

Here’s a quick recap of the news from overnight:

• The Coalition is in tatters after Nationals leader David Littleproud and all the party’s frontbenchers last night joined three rebel senators in quitting their positions after they broke shadow cabinet solidarity.

• Littleproud threatened to do so in a letter to Opposition Leader Sussan Ley earlier on Wednesday, arguing she should not accept the resignations of Bridget McKenzie, Susan McDonald and Ross Cadell after they crossed the floor on hate crimes legislation.

• The schism came as right-wing elements of the Coalition expressed concern that Labor’s hate crimes bill unduly burdened free speech, despite shadow cabinet giving in-principle agreement to amended legislation on Sunday.

• The Coalition is now in jeopardy for the second time since the 2025 election after Littleproud made the dramatic decision to ditch the partnership in May.

Stay tuned for updates.