Scrap net zero, Victorian Liberal members tell Sussan Ley

3 hours ago 3

Victorian Liberal Party members have called on the federal opposition to abandon its support for net zero emissions by 2050, as leader Sussan Ley heads into a rocky debate on climate change policy.

State members also urged the federal party to block trans people from women’s and girls’ sport, with MPs Bev McArthur and Moira Deeming supporting the motion at the Liberal state council held on Sunday at Melbourne’s Moonee Valley Racecourse.

Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and her energy spokesman Dan Tehan.

While the state party has struggled to show the Victorian public it is a viable alternative, a growing number of long-standing MPs have announced their retirement at the November 2026 election and sparked some hope of renewal. Former treasurer Kim Wells, elected in 1992, confirmed on Sunday he would leave parliament next year.

Motions agreed to at the state council are non-binding. While they have no practical effect, the priorities of members can pressure the parliamentary party on policy at a state and federal level.

The Paris Agreement, signed by Australia almost a decade ago by the Abbott government, determined that a target of net-zero emissions by 2050 was key to limiting warming below 2 degrees to avoid extreme weather and economic downturns associated with a changing climate.

Victorian members on Sunday called on Ley to ditch that commitment, following the Queensland, Western Australian and South Australian branches.

State Opposition Leader Brad Battin addressing members on Saturday.

A handful of members speaking against the motion on Sunday said it would destroy their chances at the next election.

The federal Labor government will be heavily focused on climate change policy this week, with Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen soon to release a long-delayed National Climate Risk Assessment and the interim 2035 emissions-reduction target.

The target is likely to be between 65 and 75 per cent. But there is an outside chance the government could agree to a target in the mid-50s after the urging of sections of the business community.

The target’s release will likely expose divisions over climate policy for the federal Coalition, which has been mired in arguments over net zero since its election loss in May.

Most Nationals MPs and a bloc of Liberals want Australia to quit the Paris climate deal and dump the current 2030 target of a 43 per cent emissions reduction.

But Ley, said to be personally in favour of retaining the targets, has ordered a review of climate policy by federal energy spokesman Dan Tehan to buy the Coalition time to settle the bitter internal dispute.

Victorian Opposition Leader Brad Battin did not attend the party’s state council on Sunday, but on Saturday said state council was an opportunity for members to have free debate and reiterated that votes were not binding.

Liberal MP Kim Wells leaves a party room meeting in March.

He also paid tribute to Wells, saying the Rowville MP’s more than 30 years in parliament had been “defined by loyalty, diligence and unwavering commitment to his community and the state of Victoria”.

McArthur and Deeming were among members to speak in favour of a motion on Sunday that asked the federal party to keep trans people out of women’s and girl’s sport, receiving applause from the floor.

The membership voted to remove a line from the motion that would have suggested expanding mixed sports for anyone to participate in.

The motion immediately frustrated others in the party. Two Liberals, speaking anonymously to be frank about internal issues, said the vote did not represent the broader party nor the concerns of the public.

Moira Deeming (centre) with fellow Liberal MPs on Saturday.

State opposition spokeswoman for women Cindy McLeish was among the few members to vote against the motion, outraging conservative quarters of the party room.

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