Hastie the answer for struggling Coalition but not just yet

It is clear from Peter Hartcher’s article on MP Andrew Hastie that he is the only one in the Liberal Party who is capable of being competitive with Labor (“ Why Hastie v Hanson has become a defining moment for One Nation … and the Coalition ”, September 12 ). The Coalition is currently just treading water with Angus Taylor as leader and it will lose yet more votes in two years’ time. Hastie is young, intelligent and popular but, not wanting to upset the apple cart, he will most likely wait until his party loses another election. Although he opposes net zero emission targets, by the time the next election is held, renewable energy and electric cars will be even cheaper than power plants and vehicles that rely on fossil fuels, so he will not be able to turn back the tide. By that time, the Trump experiment will have been shown to be the failure it is and, hopefully, Australians will recognise that One Nation is not the answer to our problems. Peter Nash, Fairlight

I’m no supporter of Andrew Hastie, but standing up to Gina Rinehart and her sidekick Pauline Hanson is a big tick in his favour (“ Rinehart aims to make Hastie an outcast ... with One Nation’s help” , September 12). We are told that Hanson’s popularity can be explained, to some extent, by voters wishing to make a protest vote about the cost of living, with a good dose of resentment of the powerful classes thrown in. If that’s the case, a vastly more intelligent protest would be to vote independent, Green (or even Liberal, if necessary) and protest against bullies like Rinehart and all their acolytes who are worming their way into influence and power. These people are much more concerned about your vote than your cost of living. Prue Nelson, Cremorne Point

In the bitter feud between Andrew Hastie and Pauline Hanson and its relationship with the war in Afghanistan, one group seems to have been forgotten – the traumatised relatives of the unarmed Afghans killed by Australian soldiers. In an impoverished country like Afghanistan, even a small payment by the Australian government to the deceased breadwinners’ families would make an immense difference to their lives, once again under the oppressive control of the Taliban. Politicians and billionaires may bicker, but the real victims are those still awaiting some modest reparation for past misdeeds. Bernard Moylan, Bronte

The media fell for One Nation’s distraction tricks after Warren Pickering’s mea culpa (“ Can someone ‘please explain’ One Nation’s messaging muddle? ” September 12). The real issue was the lie, not the past indiscretions. Everyone’s got a past. The fact that he took drugs, had open relationships et cetera is irrelevant. The issue is that when confronted with this he stood up and lied, calling the allegations false, then after 24 hours realised the game was up and confessed. That One Nation can spin this into a positive redemption story is appalling. The media should have nailed him down to the fact that he knowingly, intentionally, lied. Here is a man potentially standing for high office in Victoria and he can’t tell the truth about his own life. His first instinct is to lie.