Coalition reunited after last-minute deal between Liberal and National leaders

The federal Coalition has been formally reunited after eleventh-hour negotiations between Liberal leader Sussan Ley and Nationals leader David Littleproud, ending weeks of political uncertainty in opposition ranks.

The split was triggered last month when three Nationals senators broke shadow cabinet solidarity by voting against the government's hate speech legislation. Their move led to their removal from the frontbench and sparked a wider walkout by Nationals MPs and senators, fracturing the long-standing Liberal-National partnership.

Under the new agreement, the three senators will be reinstated to the frontbench, alongside the full return of Nationals members to the shadow ministry. All reinstatements will take effect from March 1, while Mr Littleproud and deputy leader Kevin Hogan will immediately resume participation in shadow cabinet meetings in their leadership roles.

Mr Littleproud defended the decision to stand by the senators, arguing the legislation had not been afforded sufficient scrutiny.

"When you're dealing with something as substantive as freedom of speech, to be given only hours to determine its impact on Australians is not good enough," he said.
"The National Party acted in good conscience. Our responsibility is to properly scrutinise legislation - that's our job."

Ms Ley acknowledged the turbulence of recent weeks but said the Coalition now had a responsibility to refocus on holding the government to account and presenting a united alternative.

"I acknowledge this has been a difficult time - not just for our parties, but for millions of Australians who rely on the Coalition for leadership and scrutiny," she said.
"The Coalition is back together and looking to the future, not the past."

A key element of the deal is a strengthened and codified shadow cabinet solidarity agreement, which clarifies that only the joint Coalition party room - not individual party rooms - can override agreed positions. The measure is designed to rebuild trust following two Coalition ruptures since the last election.

The agreement represents a compromise from both leaders. Ms Ley had initially pushed for a six-month suspension from the frontbench for the dissenting senators, while the Nationals proposed a shorter stand-down. The final arrangement backdates the cooling-off period to January's mass resignations, effectively clearing the way for reunification.

Liberal sources say Ms Ley consulted extensively with her party room before concluding that compromise was preferable to risking a prolonged or permanent split.

The Coalition sat separately in parliament last week, but the reunification restores the traditional opposition alliance as it seeks to regroup and refocus its efforts against the Labor government.