Page "National Party of Australia" Paragraph 21

In 1975 the Country Party changed its name to the National Country Party as part of a strategy to expand into urban areas.

This had some success in Queensland under Joh Bjelke-Petersen, but nowhere else.

In Western Australia, the party publicly walked out of the coalition agreement in Western Australia in May 1975, to return in 1976.

However, the party split in two over the decision in late 1978, with a new National Party forming and becoming independent, holding three seats in the Western Australian lower house, while the National Country Party remained in coalition and also held three seats.

They reconciled after the Burke Labor government came to power in 1983.