West Australian Liberal leader Libby Mettam has refused to say whether conservative MP Nick Goiran remains welcome in the partyroom after his demotion.
Mr Goiran relinquished his role as parliamentary secretary before his colleagues were due to vote on the matter on Thursday.
His resignation had been sought by Ms Mettam, who vowed upon taking the leadership this week to draw a "line in the sand" and lessen the influence of factional powerbrokers.
She moved immediately to strip Mr Goiran of his shadow cabinet responsibilities, leaving the heavily-depleted Liberals without a lawyer in their state parliamentary ranks.
Peter Collier was allowed to retain his posts after publicly apologising for "inappropriate language" he used in a leaked group chat, whose members included upper house colleague Mr Goiran and former federal minister Mathias Cormann.
Mr Goiran had taken a lead role in scrutinising government legislation in parliament, where the Liberals hold just nine seats - including two in the lower house - after an embarrassing election defeat in 2021.
Asked repeatedly on Thursday whether he remained welcome in the Liberals partyroom, Ms Mettam refused to answer.
"I have taken decisive action in relation to matters that I am able to manage as the leader of the parliamentary Liberal party," she told reporters.
"I am very pleased with the outcome.
"Nick has been elected by the people of the South Metropolitan region and he will continue to serve in parliament in that role."
Mr Goiran this week said Ms Mettam had his unequivocal support despite his disappointment at the demotion.
The Liberals and Nationals, who hold opposition status after winning more seats in the lower house, are heading into the new parliamentary year with new leaders, Ms Mettam and Shane Love respectively.
Ms Mettam said she was eager to turn the focus away from the internal feuding within her party and towards an "out of touch" premier in Mark McGowan.
"We have a cost of living crisis, we have a broken health system, we have crime out of control and we have a housing crisis," she said.
A review of the party's blowout 2021 election defeat found the WA Liberal party had become a political "wasteland" amid the corrosive influence of factions.
