Sussan Ley Is ‘Losing Support,’ Victorian Liberal Senator Says

Ley has received backing from multiple members of her leadership team.

Senator Sarah Henderson asks questions at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on Oct. 10, 2025. Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty Images

Victorian Liberal Senator Sarah Henderson has declined to back Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, indicating the Liberal Leader is “losing support” as the party faces internal division over climate policy.

Henderson said there had been many instances of “backgrounding,” and said she wanted to be “authentic and honest.”

“I do have to say, really honestly, I do think Susan is losing support, but I do believe in miracles. We can turn things around, but things are not good,” Henderson said on Sky News.

“I don’t support things the way they are at the moment ... and I’m desperately hoping we get our act together.”

Henderson, a former Education minister, was demoted from the front bench after Ley was elected leader following the 2025 election.

She pointed to a Newspoll result showing a primary vote of just 24 percent.

“We’ve had a dire result. Things are not travelling well,” Henderson said.

When pressed on whether she supported Ley’s position as leader, Henderson replied, “I can’t back the way things are.”

“And I do think a number of big mistakes have been made, including abandoning so many of our policies,” she added.

Net Zero Policy Split

The Liberal Party is due to reveal its policy on net zero next week, after Coalition partner the Nationals rejected the 2050 target on Nov. 2.

Henderson reiterated she was against net zero.

“We had a net zero policy supporting net zero for the last two elections, and we went dramatically backwards,” she said. “It does not stack up.”

Henderson described the current situation as a “very difficult time for the Liberal Party but stressed she was not calling for Ley to be removed.

“I am just saying she is losing support ... and we are all working very hard to get our party back on track,” she added.

Liberals Defend Ley

Despite Henderson’s views, senior Liberals have backed Ley.

Shadow Defence Minister Angus Taylor, a member of the National Right of the Liberal Party, said Ley would lead the party to the next election.

“Sussan is well established as a leader and will be with us through to the next election,” he said.

Taylor said “absolutely not” when asked if he was planning to move against Ley and replace her as leader.

This came after fellow Liberal Party member Senator James Paterson also expressed support on Nov. 6.

Ley won a leadership contest against Taylor in May, 29 votes to 25, with the support of the moderates and centre-right of the party.

Liberal deputy leader Ted O'Brien and Moderate MP Dave Sharma also said Ley retains the support of the party room.

Members of the Shadow Cabinet are required to back the leader to remain on the front bench.

Western Australian Liberal MP Andrew Hastie has previously said he wants to lead the party in the future, but stepped down from the front bench recently over immigration policy.

Ahead of the net zero policy decision next week, the party is divided on a way forward: Moderates fear losing support among Teal voters in metropolitan seats, while conservatives argue the Coalition backed net zero in the past two elections, and still lost.

Labor Party Capitalise on Infighting

Meanwhile, the Labor Party has taken aim at the Liberal Party’s infighting and position on climate change.

“The Liberals and Nationals are focused on fighting each other over if climate change is real,” Bowen said on BlueSky social on Nov. 6.

Labor Minister Tanya Plibersek posted a video of herself cooking on Facebook, and highlighted the contrast between the Coalition’s debate on net zero and Labor’s recent achievements.

“While the Coalition cooked up a net zero debate no one wants, we’ve passed Baby Priya’s Bill, expanded bulk billing, announced free solar power for households, launched a program helping more people with a disability find jobs they'll love, and I’ve reduced food waste with my fridge clean out curry,” she posted.