Following her threat to sue him, the leader of the Victorian Liberals will attempt to “unify” his party by expelling suspended MP Moira Deeming.
After Peter Dutton said the state arm needs to “get their act together,” John Pesutto said talks are underway to permanently expel Deeming at the party room meeting next week.
Deeming was demoted without pay last week for attending a neo-Nazi-led anti-transgender march, and yesterday she said she would sue Pesutto if she didn’t make a statement denying her ties to the Nazi party.
According to Deeming, Pesutto broke a promise to publicly exonerate her of any ties to neo-Nazis.
Pesutto denies ever implying that Deeming is associated with Nazis.
Deeming has threatened to defame Pesutto and wants her nine-month punishment to be overturned.
She gave Pesutto yesterday until 2 p.m. to issue a statement disputing the allegations of Nazi affiliation that she claims were levelled against her.
Pesutto declined to answer by the due date.
Evidently, giving the party room an ultimatum did not go over well, Pesutto said.
“Internally, there are numerous discussions taking place.
We won’t stand for becoming the subject of this kind of attention.
Matthew Bach, a senior liberal, will back a proposal to permanently deport Deeming if it is made.
Bach deemed the threat to sue the party’s head “an amazing move, an extraordinary move.”
“I’m not shocked,”
Prior to that, Peter Dutton weighed in on the conflict, warning that the national Liberal branch could need to step in.
“The Liberal Party needs to get their act together down there and keep the pressure on the government,” Dutton said.
What will happen next? According to John Pesutto, at the party room meeting, he and his colleagues will consider turning her nine-month suspension into a permanent one.
“That is a possibility.”
Pesutto argued that party change is required rather than federal involvement.
He remarked, “I’m going through some difficult times to start that reform.”
He expects the transformation to take place in the next months.
