Battling Turnbull backs candidate

Embattled Liberal leader Malcolm Turnbull has backed his star recruit to reclaim the seat of Corangamite at the next federal election.
Mr Turnbull said he was confident Sarah Henderson would take back the seat to help the Liberal party win the election.
“You could not have a better advocate for Geelong and for Corangamite than Sarah Henderson,” he said.
“I’m confident that Sarah will win this seat. She is an oustanding candidate and I’m confident we’ll win the election.
“Corangamite needs a powerful, persuasive advocate. It needs a representative (who) will ensure this community gets the services and the investment it deserves and you couldn’t have a better advocate than Sarah Henderson.”
Party members installed Ms Henderson, a former ABC televison presenter, in Corangamite earlier this year after veteran MP Stewart McArthur lost the long-held Liberal seat to former Ballarat unionist and ALP candidate Darren Cheeseman in 2007.
Mr Cheesman has accused Ms Henderson of having more in common with Sydney, where she lived in the lead-up to the preselection vote, than Corangamite.
Ms Henderson hit back, saying she now lived at Barwon Heads while Mr Cheeseman was from Ballarat.
Mr Turnbull threw his weight behind Ms Henderson when he visited Grovedale and Torquay on Monday. He attended a jobs forum at Grovedale before meeting party members, invited guests and Surf Coast Shire councillors at Torquay’s Senior Citizens hall.
Mr Turnbull brushed off a question at Grovedale about whether his low poll ratings as preferred opposition leader and preferred Prime Minister could hurt Ms Henderson’s chances of winning the marginal seat of Corangamite.
“We’re focused on election days. The polls go up and down,” Mr Turnbull said.
He also promised on The Pulse ration station that the Liberals would try to amend a proposed carbon-dioxide emissions trading scheme to protect employment, “in particular jobs in energy-intensive regions such as Geelong”.
Mr Turnbull warned that Geelong would suffer “very heavy, disproportionate job losses” under the Federal Government’s proposed trading scheme.