Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s woes are worsening, with one Coalition MP saying he will back a spill of the leadership.
Queensland backbencher Warren Entsch said he would seek a resolution to the issue at the next partyroom meeting, which takes place next week before Parliament resumes.
Mr Entsch said he strongly supported Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull to replace him, though Mr Turnbull has not declared himself a contender.
Another Coalition backbencher, Dennis Jensen, has also called for change, saying he told Mr Abbott he no longer supported his leadership.
However, other colleagues on both the backbench and in Cabinet have backed Mr Abbott and called for party unity.
The statements by Mr Entsch and Dr Jensen show momentum is building for a possible move against Mr Abbott, who has been battling increasing speculation that his leadership is terminal.
Dr Jensen said Mr Abbott had been aware of his position for more than a week.
“I told the Prime Minister that on January 23,” he told the ABC.
“I texted him, and this was prior to the Prince Philip [knighthood] debacle, I texted him and told him that he no longer enjoyed my support.”
“In my view the more quickly you do this, the better,” he said.
Bill Shorten writes: “Australian family are sick and tired of cuts to childcare.”
Dr Jensen said he was no longer behind Mr Abbott because the Coalition was “not governing as we should be”.
“There is no strategic direction, the policy is not consistent and coherent,” Dr Jensen said.
He said Mr Abbott was an “outstanding” opposition leader and “probably the best that Australia’s ever had, but he hasn’t made the transition to prime minister”.
“He is not focused on policy. He is not focused on strategic direction. He is focused more on tactics and tactical policy,” Dr Jensen said.
Brough does not give Abbott unequivocal support
Liberal backbencher Mal Brough, who reports suggested could have been a leadership circuit-breaker, said he “has no intention of challenging the Prime Minister”.
He did not, however, offer Mr Abbott his unequivocal support.
“I listened to the [National Press Club] speech yesterday … there were a couple of things at least that weren’t covered and for that reason… he does not have that unequivocal support. It’s a critical support,” he said.
“Critical of some of the things that we are doing wrong and I’m doing that on behalf of the public, and one of them is this [GP] co-payment,” adding he also objected to changes in pay for Defence Force personnel.
Julia Gillard has taken a stab at the Prime Minister for knighting Prince Phillip.
But Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said there had been unanimous support for Mr Abbott in Cabinet.
“I think that’s a strong message, not only to the backbench but to the public as well and I think it’s very important to point out that there is, I think, a general mood among backbenchers that people don’t want to go back to the chaotic period that presided when Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard and then Kevin Rudd again occupied the office of PM,” he told the ABC’s 7.30 program.
“I think at the moment if people are going out to sabotage this PM, then it really has all of the hallmarks of the worst period presided over by Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd and I don’t think that’s in our best interests.
“I don’t think it’s in the country’s best interest and I think frankly at the moment the PM should be given the opportunity to demonstrate what he enunciated in his speech at the Press Club, that he has a very strong plan for the country.”
Clear other people support call for Abbott to go, says Jensen
Dr Jensen said he did not know how many other Liberal MPs would support his call for Mr Abbott to go, but said “it’s clear that there are people that are supportive of that though”.
He said he had not decided who he would back to take over but indicated to the ABC he might support Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.
Dr Jensen said he disagreed with the statement the Prime Minister made at the National Press Club on Monday that it should be the people, not the Coalition party room, who “hire and … fire” prime ministers.
“The constitution’s quite clear that the people do not elect the prime minister,” Dr Jensen said.
“We don’t have a presidential system.
“The constitution says that where a group can be formed in whatever way they form it, that can have control and carriage of the House of Representatives, can form government and the leader is selected from there.
“It’s not that the people choose the prime minister.”
Removing Tony Abbott as Prime Minister will do more harm than good.
Dr Jensen said he intended to have discussions with Ms Bishop, Mr Turnbull and Mr Morrison about his views on the leadership.
He said he was aware his comments would fuel further controversy but said he had always “been prepared to do whatever is necessary to change things for what I view to be, in absolutely, in the national interest”.
He said many constituents had told him “Tony Abbott has to go”.
“That is universal, that’s my party members, that is my constituents. I’m getting people that are normally absolutely rusted on, they have voted Liberal all their lives, and they are saying they will vote informal next time,” he said.
“They can’t bring themselves to vote Labor or anything else but they’ll vote informal.”
A version of this article originally appeared on ABC News here and has been republished with full permission.
Top Comments
If they replace him can they please get someone like a movie star to replace him because if we are going to be screwed I'd rather it be by someone good looking :)
Abbott has done only one thing right since he somehow landed the job of PM - he got rid of the Carbon Tax.
This was the reason Gillard was loathed. Yep, fraid so. Rudd being booted out was a shock, but it was accepted. People were getting on with it. She promised flat out there would be no carbon tax. Yes, she did. Yes, it was definitely and unequivocally a flat out lie.
And then she did it anyway. And, as we knew would happen, electricity prices soared and the knock on effect is still being felt by the people who can least afford it. And then they spent months and months chanting the "it's not a lie, it's for your own good" mantra while the public grew more and more enraged at having a tax they had been flatly PROMISED would not happen shoved down their gullets.
Stop right there. This has f**k all to do with climate change denial. I do not know a single person who denies climate change. I do not know a single person who was pro CT. I hang out with people who are similar to the people I grew up with. Hard working, working class people. When it comes to education and welfare I am raging socialist. I might have a lot more money these days but I have not forgotten what it is like to struggle to keep a roof over your head and the electricity from being shut off.
If you think hammering the poor - which is EXACTLY what the CT did - is a price you are willing to pay on their behalf then f**k you. And no, you're NOT struggling if you are pro Carbon Tax.
Everyone except the Mad Monk knows the whole earth is warming. And every single person who is not wealthy also knows that hammering the poor with another tax is totally unacceptable. Take the problem of pollution to the billionaire polluters and stop telling people who cannot afford it to suck it up. You know who cares about the future of the earth when they can't feed their kids? Nobody. That's human nature for you. And all the "oh but it's for your kids" sanctimonious crap in the world will not pay the bills.
I've never voted right wing in my life. Have voted Labor my entire life - and Labour too when the UK was my home. And last election I voted independent because obviously I could not vote for that sickening, idiotic sexist Abbot, but I was too FURIOUS at the lie Gillard told and the harm that tax did to those who cannot afford it and the Labor shenanigans following that flat out lie to reward them with a vote
Yes, people vote for the person. No, they will not reward a person with the plum job of PM when they strongly dislike that person. Live with it.
Labor have a chance to prove they have learned their lesson this time. If (when) they get in - NO MORE LIES. I don't care how many pollies lie, it's not ok. And we keep proving it is not ok by booting them out when they lie as unambiguously as Gillard did and as Mr Rabbit is now doing.
So, no, there will be no carbon tax under the government they lead. https://www.youtube.com/wat...
Or they will be out on their ear again. Here's hoping they only needed that lesson once.
As for Rabbit - I hope they keep him, he's doing a great job of proving what the right wing are about and always have been about - keeping the wealthy happy and sh**ting on those less fortunate than themselves from a great height.
And do you know who has earned their wealth? Nobody. Sure, wealthy people sometimes work hard. They also have connections, family assistance, education or just plain luck on their side. And every working class person I have ever known works much harder than any wealthy person just to stay afloat. If you think you earned your wealth, instead of just being grateful for it you are an over entitled fool. This is a great study on the psychology of the wealthy. http://dailyoftheday.com/ne... I am grateful now, though I was not at the time, that I grew up achingly poor. It prevented me from being one of those jerks they talk about in the study.
There is one thing separating wealthy people from poor people. Luck. And if you don't believe me, that does not surprise me at all.
But ditching him would also work, it will make them look weak (like the squabbling in Labor made them look weak). Either way, it's doubtful now that they have tried to steal Medicare and education from the majority, that they will make a comeback before the next election. And I'll vote Labor again this time.
But they better not lie to us again. Or it will be short lived victory.
The Carbon Tax was coupled with a variety of welfare increases and bonus payments. I know because I have family members who received them.
I'm no ALP fan, but Gillard ran a minority government. The Carbon Taxwas a broken promise, but I think it's wrong to label it a lie (I'm far more comfortable with labelling Abbott's broken promises as lies though).
Gillard won government by compromising after nobody won the election in their own right. When you have a hung parliament, as we did, you get a minority government - or no government at all. Gillard managed to convince other MPs to support her to form a government.
You have to remember that a Westminster parliament is not intended to be party-based. It is just a collective of representatives from electorates. Government is formed when enough of them agree to act together - but that only comes with compromise.
Political parties just make that compromise and agreement far more likely (do you really think every ALP member agrees with every ALP policy? Of course they don't, that's why there's factions - and back-stabbing.)
Abbott, on the other hand, won government outright and did not have to break election promises to do it. In fact, his opponents are trying to make him keep his promises. A very different situation to that faced by Gillard.