Updated May 25, 2026 — 10:02am,first published May 25, 2026 — 9:51amFormer Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull has backed a new centrist party of teal independents to take on the Coalition, as Kooyong independent MP Monique Ryan rules herself out of joining.Turnbull said on Monday the opposition had left a vacuum in Australian politics that created prime conditions for a new political movement, after this masthead revealed on Sunday that independent MPs were in the advanced stages of forming a new party structure.Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull has criticised his old party for chasing One Nation votes.Dominic Lorrimer“There is absolutely an opportunity there. I mean, people feel the Liberal Party has moved away from the centre,” Turnbull told Radio National. “That is why the teals were elected, and the more the Liberal Party tries to chase and emulate and copy One Nation, the more it builds up the vote for One Nation.“I think there is a vacuum for an alternative centre party. Now, the teals would be obvious people to be part of that, or to do that, and I’ve talked to them about that publicly going back some years, but whether they actually decide to do so is up to them.”Sources familiar with the conversations told this masthead Turnbull had raised with moderate Liberals the prospect of joining a new centrist movement. Turnbull on Monday denied being actively involved in setting up a new party, and sources close to the independents said some conversations had involved Turnbull and some had not.“I’m not involved with any plans to set something up,” Turnbull said.Asked whether he had been speaking about the political climate with some of the independents, Turnbull said: “I talk to a lot of people.”Steggall on Monday said the independents were discussing how to be more effective in parliament when voter frustration with major parties is mounting.Independent MP Zali Steggall said Australians were fed up with the major parties.Alex Ellinghausen“There are conversations. That’s that’s about all I can say at this point,” Steggall told Radio National.“I’m consulting with my community, looking at what the options are.”She said after seven years in parliament she could see many opportunities for politics to be done “better and differently” and that many Australians were frustrated with the major parties.“I think there is a huge sense of disquiet with where Australian politics is at, and I think it is my responsibility and others’ responsibility to step up,” she said.“For me, I take that responsibility really seriously, that we have to keep evolving and looking at how do we best serve our communities.”Steggall acknowledged the risk of losing votes if Australians saw joining a party as a loss of the independence.“How do we actually evolve and expand the community movement, so that communities that don’t currently have the option of voting for an independent have more choice? I think that’s a really interesting challenge for us.”However, early on Monday morning, Kooyong MP Monique Ryan released a statement ruling herself out of joining the party – at least before the next election.“In both 2022 and 2025, I stood as a community independent. That is the commitment I made to the people of Kooyong,” Ryan said in a statement.“For the past four years, I have worked closely and collaboratively with crossbench colleagues from both the House and the Senate. Representing the people of Kooyong in Canberra has been one of the biggest honours of my life.“I will continue to do that in the capacity in which I was elected: as a community independent, voted for and answerable to the people of Kooyong.”Liberal moderates on Monday ruled out defecting from the Coalition and attacked the potential new outfit.“I think no one actually takes this party seriously,” Shadow treasurer Tim Wilson told Nine’s Today show. “It’s about them achieving their own survival, not the good of the nation.”Deputy opposition leader Jane Hume accused the independents of abandoning the platform of integrity they campaigned on.“The idea that they have gone out and said to their electorates that they are community independents, that we’re going to do politics differently, but have now demonstrated that they’re going to do it exactly the same way, I think speaks volumes,” Hume told Sky News.One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce also took a swipe, poking fun at the six independents representing wealthy inner-city electorates.“It’d be a hell of a party. Is there enough gin and tonic to go around? Is there a yacht big enough?”Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter.From our partners