New NSW Liberal leader and former Channel Nine star slapped with cruel nickname after boastful photo resurfaces
Former Labor leader Mark Latham has taken aim at incoming NSW Liberal leader Kellie Sloane, mocking a resurfaced photo of her eating Russian caviar off the back of her hand aboard a luxury superyacht years before she entered politics.
Latham, now an Independent MP, reposted the 2017 photo taken on a Majesty 122 yacht at the Sydney Boat Show.
In her original caption, Sloane wrote: ‘Eating caviar – Russian style – off the back of my hand on board.’
Latham seized on the post, branding her ‘Caviar Kellie Sloane’.
‘Meet the new NSW Liberal Leader, Caviar Kellie Sloane,’ he wrote, adding: ‘It’s long been known that eating Russian caviar off the back of your hand on a super-yacht is a big vote winner in Western Sydney… Oops, I mean Vaucluse.’
Sloane, 52, entered parliament in 2023 and represents Vaucluse, one of the wealthiest electorates in the country, covering Sydney’s eastern harbour suburbs.
On Friday morning, she was unanimously endorsed by Liberal MPs to lead the party into the 2027 NSW state election.
Conservative candidate and Shadow Attorney-General Alister Henskens pulled out earlier.
Mark Latham shared the image of Kellie Sloane (pictured) on board a super yacht
Kellie Sloane (pictured) was unanimously elected to lead the NSW Liberals on Friday morning
Former cabinet minister and moderate factional heavyweight Natalie Ward retained the deputy leadership.
Before entering politics, Sloane, a mother-of-three enjoyed a high-profile media career as a presenter on Channel Nine and later served as the National CEO of Life Ed, the charity behind the beloved Healthy Harold program.
She has also worked at Channel Seven and the ABC.
Former leader Mark Speakman announced on Thursday he would step aside, admitting he could not cut through with voters.
‘Notwithstanding my best efforts, it has now reached the point where it is impossible to get clear air,’ Speakman said.
Speakman endorsed Sloane as his successor, saying: ‘Kellie Sloane will be a fantastic leader, if selected by the Parliamentary Liberal Party. She is someone of enormous talent.’
The leadership shake-up follows similar upheaval in Victoria, where the Liberals this week dumped Brad Battin and installed first-term MP Jess Wilson as leader.
In NSW, the Nationals also elected Coffs Harbour MP Gurmesh Singh unopposed on Tuesday after Dugald Saunders’ shock resignation.
The next NSW state election will be held in March 2027.
Before entering politics, Sloane, a mother-of-three enjoyed a high-profile media career as a presenter on Channel Nine
