Continued explanations of what is currently happening in Canberra.

The morning began with Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue, the government’s top lawyer, reporting that in his opinion, Peter Dutton’s interest in a family trust that owned a number of childcare centres does not make him ineligible for election under the Constitution’s dreaded Section 44. It’s important to note that this does not mean that Mr Dutton is validly elected, as only the High Court sitting as the Court of Disputed Returns can decided that – Mr Donaghue has only reported how he thinks the court would rule.

Once that news was received, it was on for young and old. Phone calls and visits were flying thick and fast across Parliament House as everyone was looking to pull the numbers together for the petition and then the following votes. Even the cancer-stricken Senator Sinodinos who’s been off on sick leave for months returned to Canberra to have his say.

Mr Dutton presented Mr Turnbull with the petition of 43 signatures at 11.30, which didn’t leave much time for the Whips to verify that there wasn’t any funny business. The Whips are MPs (or Senators) who are responsible for making sure that the parliament runs smoothly. The most visible part of their job is ensuring that the party knows how its politicians are going to vote, and the main time they’re in the news is when there’s leadership troubles in the wind.

The meeting kicked off at 12.30, and everything moved behind closed doors. After a surprisingly close 45-40 vote to spill the leadership, Julie Bishop was knocked out in the first round of voting, leaving Mr Dutton and Scott Morrison to duke it out in the head-to-head. Mr Morrison won the vote (again by 45-40,) so it seems that Mr Turnbull’s rearguard action drew out the process long enough to prevent Mr Dutton getting into The Lodge.

For the first time in over a decade, Ms Bishop didn’t contest the deputy leadership, Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg seeing off Greg Hunt and Steve Ciobo easily

So where to from here? the Liberal Party has a new leader, but Malcolm Turnbull remains Prime Minister until Governor-General Peter Cosgrove commissions Mr Morrison as the new Prime Minister, which is expected this evening. Mr Dutton claims that he will fully support the new party leadership, but time will tell on that, I suppose.

Mr Morrison now has to ensure that the Coalition stays together, and his discussions with Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack have already started. Once the secretive pact that binds the Liberals, Nationals, Liberal Nationals and Country Liberals together is finalised again, he’ll have to select his team of ministers and get to work running the country.

We, the people, won’t get to have our say on this whole saga until the next election (unless you happen to live in Wentworth and Mr Turnbull follows through on his promise to resign if he lost the vote today [note])

Dramatis Personae

• Dr Stephen Donaghue QC – Commonwealth Solicitor-General (Statutory Office Holder)
• Senator Arthur Sinodinos – Backbench Senator, formerly Cabinet Secretary (NSW)
• Josh Frydenberg MP – Energy Minister, now Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party & Treasurer-Designate (VIC)
• Greg Hunt MP – Until recently, Health Minister (VIC)
• Steven Ciobo MP – Until recently,Trade Minister (QLD)
• His Excellency General Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC Ret’d – Governor General of the Commonwealth of Australia

[note] Fun fact: the last Prime Minister to leave on his own terms was Sir Robert Menzies who retired at the age of 71 in 1966, having become PM in 1949.