"They've Lost Their Way": Former PM Turnbull Eviscerates Liberal Party Future After Portrait Unveiling
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Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull delivered a scathing assessment of the Liberal Party’s future on November 27, 2025, saying the Coalition has become obsessed with “winning the approval” of right-wing media rather than voters, while praising crossbench Senator Jacqui Lambie for contributing more on economic policy than his former party.
Speaking to reporters after his official portrait unveiling at Parliament House, Turnbull didn’t hold back when asked about Barnaby Joyce’s rumored move to Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party, diagnosing what he called “a major problem on what used to be called the right of politics.”
For young Australians trying to understand why the Liberal Party—once the natural party of government—is struggling in polls and losing ground to independent candidates, Turnbull’s brutal honesty offers a rare insider’s view of a party potentially in terminal decline.
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The “Sky After Dark” Problem
Turnbull identified what he sees as the Coalition’s fundamental error: prioritizing approval from conservative media personalities over actual electoral success.
“There is a group of people, they’re by now, I think, essentially majority, who think the object of politics is to win the approval of a relatively narrow part of the, what you might call the right-wing media,” Turnbull said. “You know, Sky after dark and, you know, fellow travellers in social media and radio.”
The result, according to Turnbull, is politicians “running on culture war issues, on reality denial”—an approach that polling and electoral results show “doesn’t work.”
For Gen Z voters who came of age in a media landscape dominated by social media rather than cable news, this critique highlights a generational disconnect: the Liberal Party is optimizing for Boomer media consumption rather than reaching younger Australians where they actually get information.
When “Doing Deals” Became a Dirty Word
Turnbull defended Prime Minister Albanese’s decision to negotiate the environmental law reforms with the Greens, pointing to the fundamental purpose of Parliament.
“Albanese, to get the EPBC legislation through, has had to do a deal with the Greens. And, I mean, there’s absolutely no criticism of that,” Turnbull said. “Parliaments are designed for compromise and deal-doing, right? That’s the whole purpose.”
He contrasted this with his own experience facing constant criticism for Senate negotiations, recalling: “People used to criticise me and say, you’re doing deals in the Senate. I’d say, well, that’s what the Senate’s for. That’s all it does.”
The Coalition’s refusal to play an active role in shaping the environment bill, Turnbull suggested, will horrify their remaining business community supporters—one of the party’s few remaining donor bases.
The “Salvageable” Question
Perhaps most damning was Turnbull’s observation that people are even asking whether the Liberal Party can be saved.
“The question as to whether the Liberal Party is salvageable, the fact that it is a question tells you volumes,” Turnbull said. “Like if you’d said, you know, three or four years ago, is the Liberal Party salvageable, people would have said, well, you know, it might be having a rough patch, but of course it will be around forever. So I think there’s real questions about that now.”
He noted that Liberal MP Andrew Hastie—representing the party’s conservative wing—has made similar points about existential threats to the party’s survival.
For young Australians entering voting age, this represents a potentially historic shift: one of Australia’s two major parties, which governed for much of the 20th century, might not be a viable option by the time Gen Z voters reach middle age.
The Lambie Comparison
In a particularly cutting observation, Turnbull praised crossbench senator Jacqui Lambie—often dismissed by establishment politicians—for substantive policy contributions the Liberal Party lacks.
“She has more to say, has one crossbencher about tax policy, economic policy, productivity, than the Coalition does. That’s crazy,” Turnbull said.
He argued the Liberal Party “should be focused on economic growth, driving the economy, promoting entrepreneurialism, business. Those are the things we should be talking about, not this cultural stuff.”
This critique resonates with young voters frustrated by political debates focused on culture war issues rather than housing affordability, wage growth, or climate action—the policies that actually affect their daily lives.
The Business Community Problem
Turnbull’s warning about business community reaction to the Coalition’s environment bill boycott highlights a practical political problem: if the party loses both progressive younger voters and its traditional business base, who’s left?
Corporate Australia increasingly embraces climate action and diversity initiatives that conflict with the Coalition’s culture war positioning. Mining companies want regulatory certainty more than they want climate denial. Tech companies building Australia’s future economy don’t align with politicians optimizing for conservative radio audiences.
For a party that historically championed free markets and business interests, losing corporate support represents an identity crisis.
Joyce and One Nation: The Trajectory
Turnbull called Joyce’s potential move to One Nation “disappointing,” but seemed to view it as symptomatic rather than surprising. The trajectory from National Party leader to Pauline Hanson’s party illustrates the rightward drift Turnbull identified.
“It’s a real problem,” Turnbull said simply when asked about the political right’s direction.
What Turnbull’s Critique Means for Gen Z Politics
For younger Australians, Turnbull’s analysis suggests the two-party system that dominated their parents’ political lives might not survive their own political lives. The rise of “teal” independents in wealthy urban seats, the Greens’ strength in inner cities, and now Turnbull’s questions about Liberal Party viability point to a fragmenting political landscape.
This could mean more coalition governments, more crossbench negotiations, and more influence for minor parties—a system common in Europe but unfamiliar in Australia’s traditionally two-party Westminster model.
It also means young voters might have more genuine choices beyond Labor versus Liberal, as independent candidates and minor parties fill the space a struggling Coalition vacates.
The Portrait Irony
The setting for Turnbull’s brutal honesty—his official portrait unveiling—carried its own irony. As he joked, “I’m on the wall now,” he was literally being enshrined in Parliament House while declaring his former party might not be salvageable.
For Gen Z Australians watching politics through social media clips rather than traditional news, the image of a former Liberal Prime Minister eviscerating the Liberal Party at his own commemoration perfectly captured the chaos of contemporary Australian politics.
What Happens Next
Turnbull’s public critique adds pressure on Opposition Leader Sussan Ley to prove the Liberal Party can win government—or at least remain relevant.
Whether the Coalition can rebuild support among younger voters while maintaining its conservative base represents the fundamental challenge Turnbull identified. His diagnosis suggests they’re currently failing at both.
For Gen Z voters, the question isn’t just who to vote for in the next election—it’s whether one of Australia’s major parties will still exist in recognizable form by the time they’re casting ballots in their 30s and 40s.
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