Libs’ chief warns of being too smug

THE Liberal Party’s national president has declared the party has had its best 12 months in history but warns the next federal election is no lay-down misere.

Nick Greiner told party representatives at the federal council meeting in Canberra it was important to look forwards not backwards.

“Whilst now and at the dinner tonight we rightly celebrate our success over threequarters of a century, we cannot delude ourselves that the business as usual or more of the same is automatically going to be successful,” he said yesterday.

“We cannot assume that Labor will be as bad next time as they were this time.

“We really need to recognise that we are not a lay-down misere in three years’ time.”

The party had lifted its campaigning tactics to be at least competitive with Labor in the May election, but it had to keep improving.

Mr Greiner warned the crowd — including Prime Minister Scott Morrison and senior ministers — that there were “very, very severe” challenges facing mass political parties around the world, nominating fragmentation of society, rising populism, and the celebration of individualism.

He also said the Liberal Party had to continue to improve the diversity of representatives to include more women and people from ethnically diverse backgrounds.

Three women — Fay Duda, Caroline Inge and Teena McQueen — were elected to the executive’s four vice-presidential spots.

Incumbent Karina Okotel, who in August accused fellow Liberals of hijacking sexual assault allegations by staffers to promote quotas for female MPs, lost her position.