Nationals say Liberals oppose EU trade deal, Liberals beg to differ

Liberals insist they have not agreed to oppose the proposed Australia-EU trade deal, despite Nationals leader Matt Canavan claiming both parties are against it.

Some Liberals believe Trade Minister Don Farrell could renegotiate aspects of the deal, an idea strongly rebuffed by those on both sides of the negotiations.

A joint parliamentary committee is expected to scrutinise the deal early next year.

Nationals leader Matt Canavan's claim that both Nationals and Liberals are against a slated European Union trade deal has angered some Liberals who privately insist the issue has not been settled.

In an opinion piece published in The Australian today, Senator Canavan said the deal landed by Trade Minister Don Farrell would "weaken Australia's sovereignty on climate change policy" and was bad for the steel industry and some farmers.

He said the deal, which parliament must approve, was opposed by both Coalition parties. That assertion was backed by his colleague, Bridget McKenzie.

"Don Farrell can try all he likes to find a Coalition senator willing to vote for it. He won't because we are absolutely united," she told ABC Radio National today.

But two Liberal senators subsequently told the ABC the proposed deal was better than the status quo and should be adopted. One cited the diplomatic importance of the deal at a time when the US was waging trade wars.

"As long as it's not a really bad free trade agreement, and I don't think it is, we should support it," the senator said. "It goes to what the Liberal Party stands for.

Multiple senior Liberals told the ABC the matter had not been considered by shadow cabinet or discussed in the Coalition party room, and that could only happen after scrutiny by the parliament's joint standing committee on trade.

"You can't short-circuit that by [writing] an op-ed," one said, framing Senator Canavan's intervention as a clear attempt to strongarm Liberals, reigniting tensions between the parties that plagued the leadership of Angus Taylor's predecessor, Sussan Ley.

The joint standing committee process is still some time away. While the deal's text was agreed between leaders this year, it will not be signed until Australia and each EU member country complete the requisite legal checks, most likely early next year.

Some Liberals believe this leaves time to renegotiate aspects of the deal. Two Liberals seeking to downplay any disagreement said the agreed position was "opposed to the deal as it stands, subject to the proper parliamentary and Coalition process".

Senator Canavan used more cautious language in a press conference today, saying the opposition was "opposed to the deal in its current form".