By Dominic Giannini, Andrew Brown, Grace Crivellaro and Zac de Silva
New Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has outlined his vision for the Liberal Party, promising an “Australia first” approach focused on lowering taxes, reducing migration and restoring what he called the “Australian dream”.
Speaking publicly for the first time since winning the Liberal leadership on Friday, Mr Taylor said the party faced a “change or die” moment and acknowledged it had made mistakes at the last election – particularly on tax policy.
“We got some big calls wrong … especially on tax,” he admitted, referring to the Coalition’s decision not to match Labor’s tax cuts.
Standing alongside deputy leader Jane Hume, Mr Taylor pledged to “fight the worst Labor government in Australian history” and said his priority would be restoring living standards.
Mr Taylor said the key challenges facing Australians were the cost of living, access to home ownership and migration levels.
“The first priority of the Liberal Party now under my leadership will be to restore our standard of living and protect our way of life,” he said.
He argued that “bigger government isn’t the solution” and that economic growth would come from encouraging business investment and lowering taxes.
“Our goal is to grow the economy so that it delivers for you and that means giving confidence for Australian businesses to invest,” he said.
Mr Taylor confirmed the party would return to a strong focus on lower taxes, saying it “must always be the party of lower taxes”.
On immigration, Mr Taylor said migration numbers had been too high and standards needed to be tightened.
“We don’t want bad immigration,” he said.
“It’s been too high, the numbers, and the standards have been too low and that must change.”
He said prospective migrants must support democracy, the rule of law and Australia’s “basic freedoms”, adding that if someone “doesn’t subscribe to our core beliefs, the door must be shut”.
While noting that many migrants value the opportunity to live in Australia, he said national values should be “unapologetically defended”.
Mr Taylor also flagged changes to energy policy, criticising Labor’s net-zero approach and vowing to remove what he described as “bad carbon taxes” affecting vehicles, manufacturing, food and electricity.
He said the Coalition would work to reduce financial pressure on families, expand childcare choice and strengthen defence funding in response to growing global uncertainty.
“Our nation must be defended because our history, our culture, our values are worth celebrating and defending,” he said.
For many over-60s, issues such as cost of living, energy prices, healthcare access and national security remain top priorities.
Mr Taylor’s leadership marks a reset for the Liberal Party following its election defeat, with a renewed emphasis on economic management, migration controls and traditional policy settings.
Whether that message resonates with voters — particularly older Australians who have long formed a core part of the Coalition’s base — remains to be seen.
The Liberals’ first female leader Sussan Ley will resign from parliament after she was knifed by conservative Angus Taylor nine months into the job.
Ms Ley expressed gratitude after she lost the leadership ballot 34-17, but left with a parting barb against Mr Taylor’s backers who had white-anted her leadership over the preceding months.
“It is important that the new leader gets clear air, something that is not always afforded to leaders, but which, in the present moment, is more important than ever,” she told reporters in Canberra.
Ms Ley said she would tender her resignation in coming weeks following 25 years in parliament, which would then spark a by-election in her regional NSW seat of Farrer.
She said she had no hard feelings for her detractors and wished Mr Taylor well.
“I know he has experience, energy and drive. I know the whole team will have what it takes to fight this awful Labor government. I will be cheering them on,” she said.
Ms Ley entered and emerged from the meeting in a suffragette white suit, flanked by her moderate backers.
She becomes the party’s second shortest-serving leader, eclipsing Alexander Downer by only 24 days.
Victorian senator Jane Hume toppled incumbent deputy Ted O’Brien for the deputy leadership.
She won the deputy leadership, coming through a contested field that also included Mr O’Brien as well as Dan Tehan and Melissa Price.
The Victorian senator won the final ballot over the shadow treasurer 30-20, with one informal vote.
Senator Hume won the first round with 20 votes while Mr O’Brien was second with 16, Mr Tehan third with 13 and Melissa Price in last with two.
Mr Tehan’s numbers ultimately fell behind Senator Hume.
Mr Taylor had pledged a new direction for the Liberals after the party slumped to historic lows in the polls and was overtaken by minor right-wing party One Nation.
The nascent leader is already facing criticism for deposing the first female leader, with her supporters arguing she wasn’t given enough time in the job and had constantly been undermined by the conservative faction.
Labor had already released its attack ads on Mr Taylor minutes after the party room concluded, previewing where it would focus its attention over the next two years: his economic credibility.
Mr Taylor was the shadow treasurer and Senator Hume the finance spokeswoman during the Liberals disastrous election showing in 2025, when they ran a platform of higher taxes.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers wasted no time in tearing down his old sparring partner.
“Angus has zero credibility on the economy and neither does the bin fire that is the coalition,” he said.
Proudly Australian owned and operated