TNL (political party)

TNL
AbbreviationTNL
LeaderBess Brennan
General SecretarySteve Hopley
PresidentKatharine Kline[1]
FounderVictor Kline
Founded2019; 5 years ago (2019)
Registered3 June 2021
Dissolved28 November 2023
Headquarters53 Martin Place, Sydney, New South Wales
Ideology
Political positionCentre to centre-left
Colors  Teal
Slogan"Economically responsible. Socially progressive."
Website
tnl.net.au

TNL, formerly registered as The New Liberals, was an Australian political party formed in 2019. Victor Kline, a barrister from Sydney, was the founder and party leader. As of June 2022, the party president was Katharine Kline and the party leader was Bess Brennan.[1]

History

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Foundation and registration

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Victor Kline and three friends founded TNL in 2019 in response to what they saw as “a government that had apparently mastered the art of bare-faced corruption and an opposition that seemed incapable of calling them out”. Initially, the party was named “The New Liberals”. Kline claimed that the word “liberal” has twisted into a misnomer by the Liberal Party of Australia, and that many moderate disaffected Liberal and ex-Liberal voters are attracted to TNL.[citation needed]

In the 2020 Eden-Monaro by-election, Karen Porter ran as an independent under the party banner.[2] She received 1.28% of votes, placing 7th out of 14 candidates.[3]

The party's registration was approved by the Australian Electoral Commission on 3 June 2021.[4] The Liberal Party of Australia objected to the registration, due to the similarity in party names and the potential to cause confusion among electors.[5][6] Due to changes to the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 regarding party names, this decision overturned by the Australian Electoral Commission and the party's registration was revoked on 7 December 2021.[7] The party was re-registered again as TNL on 17 March 2022.[8]

Alex Turnbull, the son of former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, joined TNL in August 2021.[9][10]

At the 2022 federal election, the party endorsed eight candidates for the House of Representatives, in four states. None were successful. The party also endorsed a total of eight candidates for the Senate, two in New South Wales and six in Queensland.[11]

The party was de-registered on 28 November 2023.[12]

Christian Porter case

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In June 2021, Kline announced that he, along with party candidate and former prosecutor Vania Holt, would be pursuing a private criminal case against Christian Porter over rape allegations he is facing.[13][14]

Policies

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Some of the party's key policies included:[15]

Leadership

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  • Victor Kline (2019–2022)[21][22]
  • Katharine Kline – president (2022–present)
  • Bess Brennan – party leader (2022–present)[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "The National Executive". TNL. Archived from the original on 15 April 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  2. ^ Smyth, Ben (20 May 2020). "New Liberals candidate Karen Porter steps up for Eden-Monaro by-election". Yass Tribune. Archived from the original on 10 August 2021.
  3. ^ "Eden-Monaro, NSW". Australian Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
  4. ^ "Party registration decisions and changes". aec.gov.au. Australian Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  5. ^ Karp, Paul (3 June 2021). "New Liberals' registration approved despite Liberal party objection over 'voter confusion'". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  6. ^ Yosufzai, Rachida (16 April 2021). "Why the Liberal Party is scrambling to block the progressive New Liberals". SBS Australia. Archived from the original on 2 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  7. ^ "Review of decision under s 141(4) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 – notice of decision under s 141(7)" (PDF). Australian Electoral Commission.
  8. ^ "Notice under s 133(1A)(a) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918" (PDF). Australian Electoral Commission. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  9. ^ "I am delighted to tell you that Singapore based Australian fund manager and astute political commentator Alex Turnbull has joined The New Liberals". Twitter. Victor Kline. 13 August 2021. Archived from the original on 23 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  10. ^ "Alex Turnbull joins a minor party that aims to cancel Aus Day and reach Net Zero by 2035". ADVANCE. 20 August 2021. Archived from the original on 24 March 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024. According to a Twitter post by "The New Liberal" party's leader Victor Kline earlier this week, "Singapore based Australian fund manager and astute political commentator Alex Turnbull has joined The New Liberals".
  11. ^ "Candidates A-Z". abc.net.au. Archived from the original on 21 August 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  12. ^ "Deregistered political parties". Australian Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 16 November 2023. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  13. ^ Karp, Paul (30 June 2021). "Statement given to NSW police raises questions over Christian Porter's denial of sex with accuser". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 21 August 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  14. ^ Neilson, Naomi (1 July 2021). "New Liberals, ex-prosecutors assemble legal team to launch private criminal case against Christian Porter". Lawyers Weekly. Archived from the original on 1 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  15. ^ "Policies". New Liberals. 3 June 2021. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  16. ^ Kline, Victor. "Federal Independent Commission against Crime" (PDF). New Liberals. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 August 2024.
  17. ^ Victor Kline; Nina Mapson Bone. "Climate Policy - Net Zero Emissions by 2035" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 May 2021.
  18. ^ "Solutions, actions and benchmarks for a net zero emissions Australia" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 November 2023.
  19. ^ "Register for Job Guarantee Scheme | The New Liberals". Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  20. ^ a b "Policies | TNL". Archived from the original on 3 March 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  21. ^ "Victor Kline – LinkedIn". au.linkedin.com. LinkedIn. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
  22. ^ "The National Executive". thenewliberals.net.au. New Liberals. Archived from the original on 26 February 2021.
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