Arabic version: الليبراليون يستبدلون مرشح كرويدون قبل انتخابات فيكتوريا

According to ABC News, the Victorian Liberal Party has replaced Grant Hutchinson as its candidate for the marginal Melbourne eastern seat of Croydon, less than seven weeks before the November 28 state election. Opposition leader Jess Wilson said Hutchinson was disendorsed on Monday night after new information came to light about a civil case involving him.

Wilson said it was “no longer appropriate for him to be a candidate”. Asked whether she remained confident in the party’s candidate-vetting processes, she said she was, citing the new information. The party had cited litigation involving Hutchinson, although the lawsuit had been public knowledge since last year.

Toby Wooldridge will contest Croydon for the Liberals. He is the son of former federal Liberal minister Michael Wooldridge and the nephew of former MP Mary Wooldridge. Hutchinson, a senior lawyer, had brought a civil lawsuit against his own law firm, which prompted a counterclaim. He did not respond to requests for comment.

Sources told ABC News that the party was concerned the case could continue for some time. Other sources said the litigation was well known in political circles and there had been no recent developments, while one source described the candidate change as a “captain’s pick”. Wilson sits on the state executive that voted to disendorse Hutchinson.

Long-serving Croydon MP David Hodgett is retiring after 20 years in parliament. The Liberals hold the electorate by a 1.4 per cent margin and would expect to increase that lead at the election. The change follows separate endorsement issues in which the party removed current MP Moira Deeming as a candidate and declined to endorse Dinesh Gourisetty after his preselection.