Dire straits: Can Taylor stop the Liberal Party collapse?

Today on New Politics, we explore the escalating crisis inside the Liberal Party following the leadership elevation of Angus Taylor and ask whether the Coalition can recover from its devastating 2025 federal election defeat. With internal splits over gun control after the Bondi attacks, the breakdown between the Liberals and Nationals, mass shadow ministry resignations under Sussan Ley, and Barnaby Joyce’s defection to One Nation, Australia’s conservative movement is facing its most serious instability in decades. As Pauline Hanson’s One Nation surges in the opinion polls and the Liberals slump to historic lows, we examine whether this is a repeat of the 1990s leadership turmoil or something far more structural. We also analyse the rise of right-wing populism, the influence of Gina Rinehart, and what this fragmentation means for the Albanese Labor government and the future of Australian federal politics. Support New Politics: Patreon: Substack: Song listing: ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

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Dire straits: Can Taylor stop the Liberal Party collapse? is an episode from New Politics: Australian Politics by New Politics.

This episode is 31:01 long.

This episode was published on Feb 13, 2026.

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