Liberal offers to follow Cormann into fire

Liberal senator James Paterson insists Mathias Cormann enjoys the support of his colleagues despite revelations over last year's leadership spill

Liberal Senator James Paterson also had his visa to visit China refused.

Liberal Senator James Paterson also had his visa to visit China refused. Source: AAP

Revelations about last year's federal Liberal leadership spill may have shown Mathias Cormann in a bad light, but one fellow senator believes he still enjoys the respect and support of his colleagues.

Senator Cormann abandoned former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull to support his leadership rival Peter Dutton, in what proved a pivotal moment during the August showdown.

Former foreign minister Julie Bishop has gone as far as calling the finance minister "the most disloyal man in politics", in a new book by political journalist Niki Savva, a former adviser to treasurer Peter Costello.

But Liberal senator James Paterson says Senator Cormann still has "the deep respect and support" of his upper house Liberal colleagues.

"We would follow Mathias Cormann into a burning building if he asked us to," Senator Paterson told Sky News on Wednesday.

He said the minister was doing an outstanding job shepherding the government's tax cuts through the Senate this week.


Share
1 min read

Published

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world