Unless you like awkward comedy, this interview is a hard watch. Andrew Bragg, who has had to defend and sane wash a lot during his time in the Liberal party is now arguing that that the Nationals and Liberal party can come to an agreement on two very different policy positions, despite the Nationals literally blowing up the show.

He does realise he mangled the last idiom though as he talks about whether its time for the Coalition to divorce. Bragg is arguing that they are just in separate bedrooms at the moment, but it’s totally fine because mum and dad always do this and mum always takes dad back:

By the way, it’s walk and chew gum! I don’t think so. We’ve been married for a long time. There have been times where there have been marriage counselling session and I think before the next session, we certainly need to have our own position.

Because we represent in a main urban Australia. We also represent regional seats. But we need to make sure that we have a credible policy to present to the people who live in urban Australia. We’re a highly urbanised population and the expectation is, particularly with how many millennials and Gen Zs are on the voting rolls now, that we actually believe that this is a real risk to our future, and that we have a credible policy to address it.

So does Bragg think mum and dad should stay married?

Well, there’s a reason you have divorce laws, I guess. But we would be much better served to stay with the Nationals, because we have given Australia good government over this last 80 years. So that would be my strong preference. But it’s not at any cost. And this is a point about Labor’s net zero. They want to do their net zero at any cost. We want to do…

So he agrees – maybe mum and dad should divorce:

Well, the Liberal Party is its own party. And we need to deploy policies that allow us to maintain our status as a party of government. But we want to work with the Nats, because I don’t believe that the fragmentation of the centre-right is in Australia’s interests.

We want to have coherent, economic and national security policies, right. We’re living in a very dangerous age, so maintaining the Coalition is a high priority. But, I mean, you don’t do these things at any cost. And as I say, Labor want to do their net zero at any cost. We think that’s crazy and that’s hurting Australians.

It’s sometimes harder for adult children to deal with the inevitable truth that mum and dad should have divorced years ago.