Nationals Deputy Leader Kevin Hogan will take a 25 per cent pay cut after his party walked away from a formal Coalition agreement with the Liberals.
Speaking on Tuesday night just hours after the announcement, the newly installed Deputy Nationals Leader from Lismore outlined three of the four key policy demands that led to the breakdown of one of Australia’s most successful and enduring political alliances.
In an interview with Sky News, the Member for Page described the split as a “difficult decision” that followed a series of back-and-forth negotiations aimed at securing firm commitments on issues central to regional Australia.
“As with any relationship split, we hope this is temporary,” Hogan said. “But we simply couldn’t sign up to a Coalition deal that didn’t protect the policies we’ve fought hard to get on the table.”
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Hogan listed three core issues behind the breakdown:
- A $20 billion Regional Australia Future Fund, designed to deliver sustained investment in rural infrastructure, health, and childcare.
- Lifting the moratorium on nuclear energy, part of the Nationals’ push for reliable baseload power alongside renewables.
- Divestiture powers to address supermarket concentration, targeting the market dominance of Coles and Woolworths.
A fourth demand — not mentioned by Hogan in the interview but widely reported — was a call for enforceable mobile phone coverage guarantees in rural and remote areas, a long-standing grievance in the bush.
Hogan emphasised that the Nationals’ decision was not about political maneuvering but a matter of principle, warning that these priorities could be lost in internal Shadow Cabinet negotiations.
“Without guarantees in the Coalition agreement, we risked losing all of it. We’ve been through that before,” Hogan told Sky’s Chris Kenny
It unclear whether Hogan will retain his shadow portfolio of Trade and Tourism, however reports from Canberra suggest his personal salary will be reduced by 25 percent under the Nationals’ new non-Coalition status.
The Nationals’ federal party room reportedly voted twice to affirm the split, which Hogan said had nothing to do with personalities, including new Liberal leader Sussan Ley.
“We took this position to Sussan and would have done the same with anyone in the role. It’s about the policy.”
The political fallout was swift. Treasurer Jim Chalmers seized on the division, declaring the Opposition in disarray.
“This is a nuclear meltdown. The Coalition is now nothing more than a smoking ruin,” Chalmers said. “They are hopelessly divided on personalities and policy. This shows the new leadership has failed its first test.”
The Nationals’ decision effectively ends the formal Coalition — at least for now — and complicates the Liberal Party’s efforts to present a united conservative front against Labor.
Despite the political cost, Hogan remained resolute.
“We couldn’t in good conscience turn our back on the regions. These issues matter — not just to our base, but to the future of the country.”
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