Zali Steggall says donation rules favour teals forming own party but other independents rule out idea

Zali Steggall says funding rules that disadvantage independents and looming changes to donations laws are factors in favour of “teal” independents forming their own party, but some fellow MPs have already ruled out the idea.

Sources close to crossbench MPs say discussions about forming an alliance of independent politicians are not new and have been happening for months, but that there is no general agreement – even among the more closely aligned inner-city members referred to as teals – about such a plan.

Guardian Australia understands Steggall has been among those crossbenchers most active in discussions about a party structure, while others are less convinced.

The Kooyong MP, Monique Ryan, issued a more equivocal statement on Monday, noting she’d made a “commitment” to remain independent at the 2022 and 2025 elections, while the rural independent Helen Haines has ruled out joining any such party.

The Curtin MP, Kate Chaney, also confirmed she would continue as an independent.

“I am interested in working more collaboratively with other crossbenchers on policy – many of our communities have similar values – but right now I do not think that requires me to be a member of a political party,” she said.

Steggall said on Monday there had been “conversations” among crossbenchers about how to work in “a collaborative way to be more effective”, citing the rise of One Nation and looming changes to political donation laws as key factors.

“That did also force me to look at the setup and disadvantage of being a community independent versus a major party,” Steggall told Radio National of the donations laws.

“Spending caps, donation caps. There are many things that favour major party structures, and again, the public was incredibly cynical about that move, that it’s yet again major parties trying to rig the game for their benefit.”

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There have also been rumours that such a party could seek to entice former Liberal members unhappy with the party’s lurch to the right. The former Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who has maintained a friendly stance toward the independent movement, said he had talked to crossbenchers about a party structure in the past, but was not involved in any current plans.

“I think there is a vacuum for an alternative centre party. The teals would be obvious people to be part of that or to do that … But whether they actually decide to do so is up to them,” he told Radio National.

The “community independent” movement has seen a clutch of new crossbenchers join parliament in recent elections, many with similar traits of being focused on environment and integrity issues while running in seats held by Liberal members, with backing from the Climate 200 fundraising movement. Steggall came to parliament in 2019 after ousting the former prime minister Tony Abbott, while subsequent elections have seen Ryan, Sophie Scamps, Allegra Spender, Kate Chaney and Nicolette Boele elected, as well as the ACT senator David Pocock.

The grouping is often referred to as the teals, but while the group often advocates for similar policies and votes in similar patterns, they are not a formal party.

Climate 200 had complained that Labor’s new political donations laws, to come into effect in January 2027, would make it harder for the community independent model to keep working, placing caps on how much can be spent in a single seat or contributed by a single donor. The former Climate 200-backed independent Zoe Daniel and former senator Rex Patrick launched a high court challenge to the laws last year, alleging the changes would hurt independent campaigns against incumbent MPs.

There have been discussions for some time that, under the new model, independents would benefit from establishing some kind of party structure. There could also be benefits in terms of obtaining extra taxpayer-funded staff, which Labor, Liberals, Nationals and Greens access as established parties.

Pocock on Sunday indicated he was open to a party arrangement, telling the ABC’s Insiders “there’s plenty of conversations going on all the time”.

Ryan said she had worked “closely and collaboratively” with fellow crossbenchers, and said she would continue as a “community independent”, but did not rule out supporting a party move in future.

Haines, who is less often badged with the teal moniker, ruled herself out of such an alliance.

“Let a thousand blossoms bloom; if people want to talk about forming more formal allegiances, go your hardest … it’s not for me,” she said.

The Liberal MP Tim Wilson, who lost his seat to Daniel in 2022 before winning it back in 2025, ridiculed the party idea.

“I think no one actually takes this party seriously. It’s about them achieving their own survival, not the good of the nation,” he told Channel Nine.

Maria Kovacic, a moderate Liberal senator, said she hadn’t been approached by any such venture, and also scorned the discussion.

“I think it makes it difficult for the independents. They have resisted the branding that they’re teals, and now they are coming together as a party based on that reporting, which will be challenging for them in their own communities,” she told Sky News.