With mounting talk of her terminal leadership, Sussan Ley has been looking for a lifeline. She grabbed one on Thursday at a press conference to announce the Liberal Party would ditch the net zero carbon emissions target after months of infighting.

Ley fronted up for about 40 minutes with firm words and a fighting attitude. The opposition leader did not waver as she fired off a round of direct messages to a handful of discrete groups she wanted to reach.

To Australians in general: “You are paying too much for your power, and it’s not OK.”

To the prime minister: “When are the bills coming down?”

To mums watching their bills pile up: “I know what it’s like.”

And to conservative colleagues and the Nationals: “Make no mistake, we are not pursuing net zero.”

But to the inner-city voters wh

See Full Page