Women problem: The Liberals go for a new pale, stale male

After two significant electoral losses and two post-election reviews revealing loss of female and Millennial votes with a background of teal metropolitan victories, the Liberal Party has decided the answer to its existential crisis is not cultural or policy change but to go back to a conservative, white, stale, male leader, whose incompetence was a major factor in their record loss in 2025 (“Angus Taylor elected new leader of the Liberal Party”, smh.com.au, February 13). In the process, it has lynched its first female leader after only nine months, which is certain to further antagonise over 50 per cent of the population. Its every move is self-destructive. The party is the Aussie F Troop. Rowan Godwin, Rozelle

The Libs just don’t get it. It’s not merely the leader: it’s the constant negativity and complete absence of viable policies. It’s the constant infighting between the centre and right-wing factions. It’s that no one knows what they stand for, not even themselves. It’s thinking that strength means obstinacy and not listening to the voters, and it’s the obstructive demands of their National partners weighing them down and preventing any progressive policies. Alan Marel, North Curl Curl

Only the Liberal Party is capable of such an egregious decision in selecting a new leader for a Group One race in a field of picnic race cup contenders. But the party must feel so relieved this morning. Punted the woman who has caused such electoral backlash since 2022, elected a young, vigorous, male visionary who possesses the touch of the common man, generational wealth and the elite, GPS boarding school education where social justice, equality and transparency are paramount. Peter Snowden, Hawks Nest

Congratulations, Liberal Party. Undermine your first woman party leader and opposition leader. Then, after your worst election loss since the 1940s, replace her with a poorly performing bloke from that election, former shadow treasurer Angus Taylor, who had no economic policies. And select as deputy leader Jane Hume, who endeared herself with the voters by wanting to end work from home for public servants. I now look forward to seeing how long it will take the Liberals’ new leadership to drive polling into single figures. Irving Wallach, Alexandria

Angus Taylor, leader of the opposition – sure. Angus Taylor, prime minister – a bridge too far. Mustafa Erem, Terrigal

On multiple occasions Angus Taylor has dismissed renewable energy in favour of greenhouse gas-producing coal and gas, with the feeble line that “the sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t always blow” and, as energy minister, he delayed telling voters about the Australian Energy Regulator’s proposed electricity price rises, about double the expected inflation rate, until days after the 2022 election. In opposition, still with no credible policy alternatives, he has relentlessly pursued the Albanese government for not delivering the $275 reduction in power bills. Australia can still take responsible climate action, as well as achieving its potential as a renewable energy superpower, but not with this man at the helm. Rob Firth, Red Hill (ACT)

Angus Taylor and Jane Hume, the architects of the 2025 election drubbing? Anthony Albanese must have had a vote. Jack Amond, Cabarita

Angus Taylor may have the numbers in the Liberal Party, especially among the tired old men, but does he have the numbers that really count – among Australian voters? They remember his mediocre performance when the Coalition was in government and made their opinions evident in handing the Dutton government the worst electoral result in party history. Rob Phillips, North Epping

And the band played on. Peter Miniutti, Ashbury

It’s no surprise that the new leader of the Liberal Party is Angus Taylor, meaning that the Liberals have gone back to their conservative roots and abandoned any pretence of progressivism. Taylor is pure Liberal heartland who can relate to the Nationals in the regions, is metropolitan private school savvy, telegenic and articulate but without policy credentials. He thus presents a threat to Labor, given the Australian electorate is fundamentally conservative and always suspicious of progressive Labor governments, although it embraces superior policies. Taylor is from the Tony Abbott school, which was effective in opposition but diabolical in government, so it will be interesting to see whether the electorate allows Taylor to drag Australia back to the failed Abbott era or embraces an effective progressive future with Labor. Max Redmayne, Drummoyne

Anthony Albanese had a primary aim of making Labor the natural party of government in Australia. Now the Liberals and Nationals have done it for him. Democracy in action requires a good opposition, so congratulations and good wishes to Angus Taylor. Yet, I suspect he may have been too Hastie. Kevin Fell, Cooks Hill

Angus Taylor, the person who in 2019 publicly lied about Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, is the new leader of the federal Liberal Party. His reputation is already blemished. And he’s just rolled the party’s first female leader after she was the boss for just nine months. Such handicaps don’t bode well for poor Angus. Karen Eldridge, Leichhardt

The Libs have made a predictable vanilla choice in the election of Angus Taylor as leader. A middle-aged white male from a privileged background, having attended King’s School, working as a consultant in blue-chip companies and becoming shadow minister despite limited parliamentary experience. Lying about his meeting Naomi Wolf, or forging documents and leaking, or not making any meaningful contribution as shadow treasurer under Peter Dutton, are all forgiven as he settles into the deck chair on the Titanic. He has a chance to reinvent himself if he stops mimicking One Nation and instead becomes his own man by being inclusive, having original solutions to the questions of housing, climate change and social cohesion. Hopefully, he will take this opportunity by not only aiming to win the next election but also by bringing the nation together behind him. So far, past batting average doesn’t give much confidence. Manbir Singh Kohli, Pemulwuy

Sussan Ley made just one mistake. Last year, after the election debacle, caused by incompetent males, she allowed her mothering instinct to overwhelm her judgment and she stood for leader, one rotation too early. Instead, she should have shown the Liberal Party some tough love and allowed Angus Taylor to lead. He would, by now, have created an even bigger mess. She could then step in with great authority to lead the party to the promised land, wherever that is. Perhaps it isn’t available any more, as the sensible centre-right space is now occupied by the Labor Party. Peter Kamenyitzky, Copacabana

And the winners are: Andrew Hastie and One Nation. Fred Strassberg, Belrose

Sussan Ley is now the second-shortest-serving opposition leader in Australian history. At least Alexander Downer had the fishnet stockings to blame. She just had the Coalition breaking up twice in nine months like a couple who keep getting back together “for the kids”. And Labor had its attack ad out within minutes. It was more prepared for this result than the Liberals were. Raj Kamath, Castle Hill

Appalling response to peaceful prayer

Thank you, Waleed Aly, for your clear and helpful words (“Daily prayers are no provocation”, February 13). I now know, instead of just instinctively feel, why the police response to the Muslims praying at the protest outside the Town Hall was as appalling as it appeared in the footage. Minns, Lanyon and any of the rest of us inclined to give the police a free pass on this one need to think again. It was not a high-stakes situation. The police were not protecting the community from criminals, thugs or terrorists. There was no sign that the protesters were likely to endanger human life or destroy property, and there was certainly no threat from a group of men kneeling on the pavement. The civility of our society relies on authorities, including police, who obey the rules themselves, without prejudice or favour, react with moderation and de-escalate rather than escalate. Minns, who has been accused of wearing his heart on his sleeve in his speedy defence of another minority, the Jewish people, now needs to stand up and do the same for Muslims. If he doesn’t, it will be his prejudice he’s wearing on his sleeve, not his heart. Prue Nelson, Cremorne Point

Waleed Aly offers an emotional and detailed explanation of Islamic prayer practice but overlooks several practical realities about how Muslim prayer is managed. Take, for example, Muslim-majority countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Oman, or Kuwait, where public prayer is not an improvised activity that takes place in the middle of a protest or a volatile crowd. It is deeply respected, but it is also highly regulated. Authorities designate clear, organised spaces for prayer, and public order is strictly maintained. Security forces there would not allow a spontaneous prayer congregation to form in the middle of a protest, especially one already tense or confrontational. The idea that this Sydney incident reflects “normal” Muslim practice is misleading. A more responsible analysis would acknowledge both sides: the importance of prayer and the need for public order management. Vijay Khandelwal, Winston Hills

Waleed Aly expertly analyses the absolutely passive nature of Muslim evening prayer, contrasting that with what appears to be the overly aggressive behaviour of police. While it is always convenient to blame police for overreach, Aly fails to contextualise the police presence. They were there with expansive authority and empowered by a premier urging it to be used to quell any whiff of dissatisfaction with President Herzog’s visit. The police put themselves in harm’s way every day to protect ordinary Australians regardless of our race, colour or religion. Let’s put the blame where it should rightly rest – with a PM who still thinks it was necessary to have President Herzog here to build social cohesion, and a premier who naively assisted him. Brian Barrett, Padstow

Waleed Aly reinforces the view that Premier Chris Minns is defending the indefensible. The longer he remains obdurate about the events at the Sydney protest the more he will divide the community. A multicultural society needs leadership that promotes unity. Strong leaders are not afraid of engaging constructively with all groups, not just a favoured few. Morgan Sant, Hyams Beach

Investigation essential

If Allegra Spender, independent federal MP for Wentworth, an electorate with many Jewish people, is asking for an independent investigation into the questionable police action at the Sydney Town Hall last Monday, we surely need one (“Officer agreed to prayers before violent scenes”, February 13). Ian Ferrier, Paddington

History lessons

This week our school principal advised our staff meeting of the new laws around hate speech, as she was required to do (“History teachers are terrified by new hate speech laws”, February 13). The first thing that came into my mind was, “What about teaching history?” How are we to explain the propaganda, rise of Nazism, fascism and antisemitism around World War II, and encourage healthy discussion with students, without fearing we are breaking the law? Lo and behold, there was the article from Claire Golledge asking the same. To teach this history content, there needs to be some kind of amnesty in place in the context of educational institutions, or we risk history repeating itself in perpetuity. Sharon Everson, Wyoming

Facts, not fear

It is 70 years since I entered the workforce as a civil engineer. Australia has changed dramatically in my lifetime. It was then a rather quiet nation of some 10 million people, roughly the combined population of Sydney and Melbourne today. In my time, I have seen us welcome refugees from Europe, the end of White Australia and the growth of a multicultural Australia. I rejoice in the richness of our nation, now home to some 26 million people. But migration is set to become a major issue for discussion as this year progresses. This is to be applauded as an effective migration program is essential to our future. Discussion often displays more heat than light and facts are often lost in the debate. Could I suggest that the governments prepare a discussion paper presenting the factual data on migration over, say, the last five years, together with clarification of the variety of terms used in describing the features of our migration program? John Crowe, Cherrybrook

About a buoy

Your excellent article on the damage to seagrass by moorings failed to mention the biggest cause of damage to the harbour floor (“Harbour revival as moorings allow replanting of seagrass”, February 13). The removal of the Athol Buoy in front of Taronga Zoo means that cruise ships must anchor instead of mooring to the buoy. A ship swinging at anchor will destroy over two hectares of seabed and, as ships anchor in slightly different places, the seabed of Athol Bight is now something of a desert. Some of the largest ships in the world have moored on the Athol Buoy, and its three anchors at 120 degrees to one another ensured that there was no damage to the seabed. Its removal by the state government was an extremely short-sighted action. Gwynn Boyd, Mosman

No-nonsense Bullock

It was interesting watching Michele Bullock responding to Nationals senator Matt Canavan after he accused her of gaslighting or not being honest with the Australian people, and then tried to talk over her response (“Reserve Bank governor holds her own”, February 13). Bullock’s response was clear and showed Canavan’s question to be petty and without supporting evidence. I should not get excited about the governor of the Reserve Bank’s obvious abilities in this exchange – it was a low bar. Howard Clark, Ryde

Heat is on

Sadly, Lisa Martin is right about the Australian summer losing its sunny appeal (“It’s great to come home but not in the heat of summer”, February 13). The group Bushfire Survivors for Climate Action is appropriately labelling our summer “savage”. Over the past three months, climate-driven heat has contributed to more than 100 major fires, seven cyclones, major flooding events, and the ongoing devastating SA algal bloom. Most of us can’t escape to Denmark for relief, but we can call on the Albanese government to stop approving the coal and gas projects that make the problem worse. Karen Lamb, Geelong (Vic)

The future is faceless

This week I was being served at the check-out of a major supermarket by a very pleasant young man. Half-jokingly I asked him when would AI take over his job. “Three to five years is the time frame they are aiming for” was his reply. I was somewhat shocked. I knew it would come but had not thought it would be so soon. The plan is, of course, that there will be no staff in supermarkets. Eventually, I assume that the supermarkets themselves will cease to exist and it will all be done online. This is not a future I want, and nor do I think will it be a good one. Relationships and interactions are part of the stuff of life, even minor ones. Companies continue to make it difficult to talk to a staff member. Is the dehumanisation of a culture something to be desired and fostered?David Ashton, Katoomba

Nothing to boast about

Bad news for your correspondent (Letters, February 13) and Jenna Price (“Why do men send these pics to women? It’s not pretty”, February 12) – the appendage is almost certainly the most interesting thing about the sender. Steve Davidson, Turramurra

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