Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price has launched an extraordinary attack on fellow Liberal MP Alex Hawke, accusing him of "cowardly and inappropriate" conduct and claiming the Liberal Party fails to stand up for women mistreated by colleagues.

The intervention comes as Opposition Leader Sussan Ley continues efforts to contain fallout from Senator Price's false claim that Labor is importing Indian migrants for votes.

After Sky News reported Mr Hawke last week told Senator Price to rectify her explosive comments made on the ABC that the Labor government was importing migrants — including members of the "Indian community" — to boost its vote, she took to Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday to slam the manager of opposition business.

She alleged Mr Hawke called her office on Thursday morning — rather than speaking to her directly — and "chose… to berate one of my staff".

"He even pressed my staff that if I did not comply with his requests, I may end up like another female member of the Coalition — who I won't name," she wrote.

Senator Price says later on Thursday, she "sent him a WhatsApp message to call out his cowardly and inappropriate conduct".

"Only after that message did Alex Hawke and I speak on Thursday evening," she said.

"If people want to talk about a so-called 'woman problem' in the Liberal Party, then it's this: we don't stand up for women when they are mistreated by our own colleagues."

It is understood her comments referenced Senator Jane Hume, who made remarks during the election campaign about "Chinese spies" volunteering for Labor, which spread to social media quickly and ultimately damaged her own party.

Andrew Clennell reported on Sky News Sunday Agenda that Alex Hawke contacted me following my comments on the ABC last Wednesday afternoon – that we had a conversation.

Let me be absolutely clear: Alex Hawke did not call me, text me, or WhatsApp me at that point.

What actually… pic.twitter.com/meWCaoj1Hd

— Jacinta Nampijinpa (@JNampijinpa) September 7, 2025

Following her comments on ABC Afternoon Briefing last week, Senator Price issued a clarification stating Australia's migration policy was non-discriminatory and that "suggestions otherwise are a mistake" — but she did not apologise.

However, the next day she appeared to double down, telling reporters she had nothing to apologise for and that it was "the ABC interviewer who pushed the issue — who brought up the issue of anti-Indian migration".

"What I was doing was highlighting the fact that there is huge concern for Labor's mass migration agenda, which is applying pressure to housing, to infrastructure, to services. Then I was further pursued on this line of talking," she said.

In a statement on Sunday, Mr Hawke did not address her specific accusations but said he had spoken with Senator Price and accepted her explanation that her comments had been "misinterpreted and subsequently weaponised by Labor".

"I support her ongoing work to clarify the comments she made last week and helping return this debate to the issue of overall migration levels and having a sustainable migration program," he said.

Ongoing political fallout

The controversy last week put the Liberals in damage control, with several MPs distancing themselves from Senator Price's remarks. The issue has also created fresh challenges for Ms Ley as she works to rebuild trust with multicultural communities and shift the party away from the anti-migrant stance associated with former leader Peter Dutton.

Conservative media outlets have been critical of Ms Ley's supposed centrism since she became leader, while defending Senator Price, even arguing this week that her remarks were taken out of context and criticism masked a needed conversation around migration.

Appearing on Insiders on Sunday, Ms Ley said of Senator Price's comments: "They were wrong. They should not have taken place, and corrections have been made. They will not be repeated."

Nonetheless, given three opportunities to apologise on the Senator's behalf, she declined.

"What I have offered to the Australian Indian community is my full support, my deep appreciation, my ongoing warmth for what they bring to this country and how we value them as migrants," she said.

Ms Ley said she would be visiting Indian community groups in Sydney on Sunday to rebuild trust, and noted Senator Price would be undertaking her own engagements as well.

Price defends herself, migration numbers still the issue

In her social media post, Senator Price said she regretted "not being clearer in my comments on the ABC last Wednesday," but argued she had been "disappointed by some media reporting which has been agenda-driven and wrenched my comments from context".

"I know that many Australians of Indian ancestry — and Indian migrants living in Australia — are distressed," she said.

"Not only by my comments, but also in reading associated newspaper coverage.

"My comments were never intended to be disparaging towards our Indian community. And I wish no ill-will whatsoever to the Indian community — or any other migrant group."

Whilst defending migration, and the "important role" it has played in nation building, Senator Price said her concern is "Labor's mass migration agenda and its ramifications. My concern is not migration itself — it's the magnitude of migration".

"Labor has opened the migration floodgates. It has brought in a record 1.2 million people in its first term," she said.

"Yes, we need migration. But there's a big difference between controlled, planned, and sustainable migration on the one hand. And uncontrolled, unplanned, and unsustainable migration on the other hand."

Federal government data shows net overseas migration for the 12 months to 31 December 2024 was 341,000 people — a 37 per cent drop from the peak of 538,000 recorded in 2022–23.