FROM THE ASHES: THE LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA WILL STRUGGLE TO EVER FORM GOVERNMENT AGAIN. HERE’S WHAT COMES NEXT.

Is the Liberal Party facing an existential crisis — and does Australia now lack a credible opposition? In this essay, McCarthy Hanlin and Eliza Chaney argue the political right might be caught in a dangerous death spiral, increasingly toxic to voters and especially young Australians, with profound consequences for democratic accountability. If the Liberals cannot reform or be reborn, the case is made that Australia urgently needs a new, serious centre-right alternative to hold government to account and contest the future of the country.