Federal opposition leader Sussan Ley has announced the coalition’s new frontbench, choosing not to appoint former shadow ministers to the key roles related to the economy and the financial services sector.
Liberal deputy Ted O’Brien has been named as shadow treasurer, while Pat Conaghan, the member for Cowper in New South Wales, will be the shadow assistant treasurer and financial services minister, replacing Luke Howarth, who lost his seat at the recent election.
Former Morrison government financial services minister Senator Jane Hume has not been named in the shadow cabinet despite having recently held the shadow finance minister role under ex-leader Peter Dutton, while former shadow treasurer Angus Taylor has been moved to the defence portfolio.
Senator Andrew Bragg, who has been critical of the proposed Division 296 tax and has also called for superannuation to be used for first home purchases, is now opposition spokesman for the housing and productivity portfolios.
Both O’Brien and Conaghan are new to their areas of responsibility, with the former having only served 18 months, over two periods, on an economics committee in 2019 and 2020, but he does hold a Master of Economics.
Conaghan does not have an economics background, but has practised law and served as a NSW police officer before being elected to parliament in 2019.
On 12 May, the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that Victorian MP Daniel Mulino would be the Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services in his government when it returns to parliament in July.
