The manager of opposition business, Paul Fletcher has continued his attack on teal MPs, on the back of a Sydney Institute address where he accused the independent politicians of “tricking voters about their bona fides”.
In a speech given on Monday night, Fletcher said the teals were part of a tradition of front groups created by “left-wing political operatives” whose sole aim was to lure voters away from the Liberal Party.
Reflecting on the speech in an interview with Sky News, Fletcher said many teal votes came from Labor and Greens voters who “voted tactically because they saw this as a way to get rid of the incumbent Liberal MP”.
“The whole thing, very big money,” he added, citing the $2.1 million spent in both Kooyong and Wentworth.
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“These are unprecedentedly large amounts of money to spend on campaigns in individual seats, and I’m simply saying that the teals ought to be subject to the same scrutiny as other politicians,” he said.
Fletcher also argued the teals are a threat to majority government, noting Australia has had 80 years of majority government, bar the Gillard-Rudd terms from 2010-2013, which he called “chaotic”.
“A key question the teals should be asked, every candidate should be asked is, well, if you were elected, which major party would you support to form government?”
