Bennelong candidate appears to distance himself from Liberal party with Chinese-language ad

Scott Yung – pictured left, campaigning with Peter Dutton – told the AFR that a report he had told voters at polling stations ‘the leader’s not going to be there forever’ was ‘a lazy smear attempt’. Photograph: Dan Peled/Getty Images

The Liberal candidate for Bennelong, Scott Yung, appears to be distancing himself from the party as a paid ad tells the Chinese-Australian diaspora that he does not “blindly follow” instructions, highlighting his previous criticism of Scott Morrison.

A Chinese language ad, launched on the Australian Financial News WeChat page on Thursday morning, carried the headline “He once publicly criticised his party leader” and highlighted Yung’s “independent thinking”.