[Time for nationals to wake up to having been dudded...just like us?] ...appears to have lost the fifth upper house spot in the western region, potentially leaving it with just nine seats in Parliament. This would trigger the loss of party status, which requires a minimum of 11 seats. State Nationals are particularly furious at federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce, who said this week that it was not up to the Nationals to fight for Sheppartons SPC fruit processing plant because it was in a seat held federally by the Liberal Party. But there is also anger at the state Liberal Party, which ran candidates against the Nationals in the seat of Euroa. It remains unclear whether the party will renew the formal agreement, which expired at the election. The issue will be discussed at a Nationals party room meeting on Wednesday. One Coalition source said the formal Coalition agreement was unlikely to last the week. One source said the loss of Shepparton represented a bitter blow for the party. According to one scenario, the party could make a special case to the incoming Labor government for party funding if it does lose party status, but not if it remains in coalition with the Liberal Party. Nationals state director Jenny Hammett said it was too early to consider the future of the agreement, saying the party was focused on the outcomes of the vote counts in Morwell and Shepparton. theage.au/victoria/nationals-could-lose-party-status-after-disastrous-showing-20141130-11x412.html#content
Posted on: Sun, 30 Nov 2014 06:42:46 +0000
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