The chances of Jacinta Nampijinpa Price retreating quietly to the backbench appear slim, with the Liberal senator declaring she will continue to speak out on issues she says matter to "millions of Australians".
The outspoken senator was sacked from the shadow ministry on Wednesday night by Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, capping a chaotic week in which she falsely claimed Labor was importing migrants — name-checking the Indian community — to secure votes, before refusing to apologise.
"Despite being given sufficient time and space to do so, Senator Nampijinpa Price failed to apologise for remarks which have caused Australians of Indian heritage significant hurt," Ms Ley said in a statement.
"She also refused to provide confidence in my leadership of the Liberal Party and sadly, that has made her position untenable in my shadow ministry. The Liberal Party I lead will respect, reflect and represent modern Australia."
View this post on Instagram
Price defiant after sacking
In a statement, Senator Price said she accepted Ms Ley's decision and reiterated her "regret in not being clearer in my comments on the ABC last Wednesday".
After reflecting on her time in the Shadow Defence Personnel portfolio, Senator Price signalled her outspoken style would not change. She vowed to continue raising issues "which are in the national interest and that are important to millions of Australians".
"Be that on Indigenous issues: The plight of those in remote communities. The ongoing romanticisation of traditional culture that inhibits addressing the root causes of Indigenous violence today," she said.
"The ineffectiveness of bloated bureaucracies that have done nothing to 'close the gap'. And the need to push back against activists who, ignoring the referendum outcome and the will of the Australian people, march on with the goals of segregation and reparations under the guise of that Orwellian phrase 'truth-telling'."
There has been widespread support among Indigenous communities nationwide for truth-telling, with the Yoorrook Justice Commission — the first formal truth-telling body in the country — paving the way for Treaty legislation to be introduced in Victorian parliament this week. It has been decried by conservatives as "so-called truth-telling" and regularly denigrated.
Senator Price, who vocally opposed the Voice referendum and has been highly critical of the Albanese government's handling of Indigenous affairs, has earned the ire of various Indigenous groups and individuals — from Land Councils to politicians.
SENATOR JACINTA NAMPIJINPA PRICE
SENATOR FOR THE NORTHERN TERRITORY
STATEMENT
This evening, I spoke with the Leader of the Federal Liberal Party and Federal Opposition, Sussan Ley, who has asked me to step down from the shadow ministry.
I have accepted the Leader's decision.… pic.twitter.com/UjHZXqCxpq
— Jacinta Nampijinpa (@JNampijinpa) September 10, 2025
Fallout inside the party
The controversy has placed the Liberals in damage control. MPs have distanced themselves from her comments, which angered many in the Indian community, while others have called for an apology. For Ms Ley, the episode has created fresh challenges in her bid to rebuild trust with multicultural communities and move the party away from the anti-migration stance associated with former leader Peter Dutton.
On Thursday, the opposition leader apologised directly to the Indian community.
"May I take this opportunity, as leader of the Liberal Party, to apologise to all Indian Australians and indeed others who were hurt and distressed by the comments that were made, comments that I said at the time should not have been made," she said at a press conference in Hobart.
"May I reaffirm my strong support for all our migrant communities for the values that they bring to this country, for the contribution they make and for choosing to come to Australia."
Liberal frontbencher Julian Leeser apologised on social media "to the Indian community for any offence they felt," while Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie said Price should do the "appropriate, responsible thing" and apologise.
Senator Price has justified her claims about Indian migration by citing polling from RedBridge, led by former Labor strategist Kos Samaras.
"A recent Redbridge poll told us that 85 per cent of those who have Indian ancestry… 85 per cent voted for Labor," she said last week.
The Age reported senior Liberal Alex Hawke — who supported Ms Ley in the leadership ballot against Angus Taylor, an ally of Senator Price — privately urged shadow cabinet colleagues to challenge the RedBridge polling cited by the NT Senator.
Mr Samaras later clarified his comments to The Age: "The vote is as high as 85 per cent in some places, but can be as low as in the 60s in others."
Divisions deepen
The dispute intensified after Senator Price accused Mr Hawke of "cowardly and inappropriate" behaviour and questioned Ms Ley's leadership on Sunday. Then, at a chaotic press conference on Wednesday, she again declined to apologise to the Indian community, before refusing multiple times to affirm her support for Ms Ley.
After her press conference, Liberal senator Dave Sharma, who has Indian heritage, said she ought to resign.
"What are you doing in the shadow ministry if you don't support the leader's direction? I just don't think the two positions are compatible," he told Sky News.
Senator Price has long been a polarising figure. She campaigned against the Voice referendum and frequently criticises Labor's Indigenous policies. She has strong backing from former prime minister Tony Abbott and rank-and-file Liberals, is a regular guest on Sky News and is seen as wildly popular amongst conservatives.
But recent controversies — from her "make Australia great again" comments, to wearing a Trump MAGA hat, and now her refusal to apologise over Indian migration remarks — may have damaged her broader political brand. However, Conservatives in the party have expressed confidence she will be placed back in the inner ministry if Ms Ley is dumped as leader, and at 44, she is still young in political terms.
Asked if Senator Price should apologise, Ms Ley told reporters on Thursday: "The senator had some time to reflect and make her own decisions about what apologies were necessary. In my view, they were. The decision that I made yesterday speaks for itself.
"I will leave Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price to make her own statements. I am not making them for her."
