Polls turn up the heat on Turnbull
PM accuses Abbott of launching a calculated attack on his leadership
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has shed all niceties towards Tony Abbott with a direct accusation that his predecessor made a calculated bid to undermine him.
Liberals now fear the only way to resolve the clash could be a head-tohead showdown.
Turnbull yesterday said that an attack last week by Abbott on government policies was designed to influence a Newspoll taken at the weekend and reported in yesterday’s Australian newspaper.
And it worked, he suggested, because the poll results were unflattering to him and the government.
At a press conference yesterday, Turnbull began with a standard dismissal of the opinion poll that it was a snapshot of voters at least two years before the election proper.
But then he took a big swipe at Abbott, without having to mention his name.
“We saw an outburst on Thursday and it had its desired impact on the Newspoll. It was exactly as predicted and as calculated,” Turnbull said.
“He knew exactly what he was doing and he did it.”
He then said, somewhat unconvincingly: “I’m not going to be distracted by that.
“It’s a fact of life. That’s what’s happened.
“I’m focused on the jobs of Australians that we are protecting by delivering the leadership.”
The Newspoll survey found Turnbull’s satisfaction rating fell from 33 per cent at the start of the month to 29 per cent. The Government’s slice of the two-party preferred vote was
He knew exactly what he was doing and he did it. I’m not going to be distracted by that. Malcolm Turnbull
an election-losing 45 per cent to Labor’s 55 per cent.
Disaffected voters have pushed Pauline Hanson’s One Nation to 10 per cent of the primary vote, more than doubling the minor party’s support since November.
Labor’s commanding lead in twoparty terms is its strongest result since early 2015, when Abbott faced a spill motion in the Liberal partyroom.
Turnbull’s charges of deliberate destabilisation removes all opportunity for the Liberals to depict the Turnbull-Abbott clash as merely a policy disagreement or an intellectual contest over party philosophy.
It is now an unadorned conflict between two sizeable egos and could get nastier.
Liberal MPs could have little choice but to take sides, and to involve themselves in the brawl.
Turnbull has done himself no favours by retaliating personally rather than allowing surrogates do the job for him. It is an admission that he has had to step in to fight for his job, and his Government.