There was a whiff of weariness in some corners of parliament this week, as the former treasurer and deputy Liberal leader happily stoked another round of “Josh for Canberra” speculation.
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treasurer → be → speculation
With more rumoured comebacks than Oasis, Frydenberg’s latest foray into the national political arena saw him bouncing around TV, radio and podcast interviews to promote his new book, and pointedly refuse to rule out trying to rejoin the parliament.
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him → rumour → parliament
His book – part family history, part treatise on antisemitism and social cohesion, part political manifesto – is titled A Grateful Son.
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book → title → antisemitism
The one who set out on his own but is destined to be welcomed back to the Liberal party family with joy and celebrations?
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who → set → joy
Frydenberg is young enough, bright enough and certainly energetic enough to still make a difference in public life.
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Frydenberg → make → life
His addition to what is often a tired Coalition partyroom would certainly spice things up, and give a new weapon in their arsenal.
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what → spice → arsenal
The ideas in his book – a remix of the GST to fund income tax cuts, concerns about the future of his party, changes to the system of federalism, yet more calls for civic service for school leavers – are politically inconvenient for the federal Coalition as well as the Victorian Liberals headed for an election win, but are worth considering.
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ideas → fund → win
The talk around parliament is that Frydenberg is privately telling people he is unlikely to seek a return.
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he → tell → return
But the fact he has pointedly refused to rule it out in a conga line of media interviews, saying only that he would make his mind up later, seems opportunistic.
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he → refuse → mind
Labor sources have helpfully shared key quotes from Frydenberg’s book and media tour, pointing out his calls for changes to GST, the labour market, and criticisms of the Liberal trajectory – again, none helpful to the leader.
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sources → share → leader
The problems facing the modern Liberal party, under Taylor’s leadership, are myriad.
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problems → face → leadership
Its hostile right flank is barracking for Pauline Hanson and One Nation, its centre is still eyeing the teal independents, and Taylor – now eight months into the job – has a lower primary vote than when Sussan Ley was dumped.
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Ley → barrack → vote
The Guardian Essential poll found the Coalition primary at a record low 22% in September, compared to 25% in January, a fortnight before Taylor rolled Ley.
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Taylor → find → Ley
It’s just not clear if Frydenberg is the answer to any of these problems.
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Frydenberg → ’ → problems
One question echoing around parliament this week was: would he do a better job than Taylor on anything substantive?
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he → echo → anything
A return to the partyroom would give the Coalition a well-known face and a policy brain in a team which could benefit from both.
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which → give → both
Maybe Frydenberg would be content to return as a loyal soldier under Taylor, serving in an appropriately senior cabinet role.
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Frydenberg → return → role
Few think he’d give up a well-paid job in banking to sit on the frontbench instead of the leader’s chair.
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he → think → frontbench
The loudest cheer Hanson got at last weekend’s Cpac conference was when she sledged Taylor, saying Australians didn’t want a “smarmy management consultant” replacing Anthony Albanese as prime minister.
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Australians → get → minister
Would any of those voters more prefer the chairman of investment bank Goldman Sachs, the role Frydenberg currently holds?
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Frydenberg → prefer → Sachs
Taylor in recent times has tried throwing a bone to that fringe of the right-wing movement, producing more off-the-cuff videos with unpolished deliveries (and swearing) a la Hanson – would Frydenberg, at home in boardrooms and business lunches, be able to win back the voters furious at “politics as usual” and career politicians?
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Frydenberg → try → politics
Maybe, then, Frydenberg could chart a course back to the middle for the Coalition: not chasing its right flank further to the fringe, but setting a mainstream course back toward the centre, where elections in Australia are won.
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elections → chart → Australia
That would be a decent idea, if you forget how Frydenberg was ejected from parliament in the first place: bundled out in 2022 by Monique Ryan in the big community independents wave which swept half a dozen moderate-ish urban Liberals from their seats.
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which → forget → seats
Ryan was supported by Climate 200.
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Ryan → support → Climate
That group’s origin story may be relevant here: Simon Holmes à Court, a former donor to Frydenberg’s Kooyong 200 fundraising vehicle, was reportedly ejected from a supporter event and set up his own group in response.
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Court → eject → response
Climate 200 would hardly respond to Frydenberg’s comeback, or potential leadership, with party poppers and a “welcome back” card.
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Climate → respond → poppers
The teal wave which swept Frydenberg and several other moderate Liberals from office in 2022 hasn’t exactly swelled into a tsunami since then, and some could argue the conditions of four years ago are not there today – just ask Tim Wilson, who lost Goldstein to teal Zoe Daniel in 2022 but wrestled it back in 2025.
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who → sweep → 2025
No Liberals we spoke to this week were jazzed about the prospect of Frydenberg’s return, or the distraction it provides.
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it → speak → return
But if there were any people happy about his potential return, they were on the government benches.
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they → be → benches
Albanese joked to Labor’s caucus meeting today that Frydenberg was now the “shadow opposition leader”, claiming “Josh Frydenberg’s priority has always been Josh Frydenberg”.
“I’m surprised Josh Frydenberg isn’t trying to bump me off this program,” the PM joked on the ABC on Tuesday.
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PM → joke → Tuesday
Treasurer Jim Chalmers claimed his old sparring partner was “stalking” Taylor for the leadership, proclaiming.
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partner → claim → leadership
One senior Labor source cheekily joked that we should call it “the Fryre Festival”, a reference to the ill-fated and chaotic Fyre Festival in 2017, which had its own short-lived and catastrophic comeback in 2024.
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which → joke → 2024
Frydenberg’s media tour is likely to continue over coming days.
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tour → continue → days
The speculation over his potential comeback will linger even longer – Labor will make sure of it.
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Labor → linger → it
The Aporia
