They knew they were playing a cynical political game all the time

The LNP needs to be severely punished at the next election:

Former finance minister who helped sink carbon price now urging Australia to adopt one

Mathias Cormann, now head of the OECD, was instrumental in repealing the nation’s key climate policy in 2014

I suppose a certain proportion of them were just outright climate change denialists who still prefer to believe spivs and self interested billionaires over scientists - but out of the total LNP, I would guess that 2/3 of them knew all the time that they were just playing cynical politics with carbon pricing.

And Malcolm didn't have the bravery while in power to call it out.

Ever since Gillard lost,  the leadership of the LNP has been almost startlingly incompetent and an embarrassment.