Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott: The decade long feud between former prime ministers

Tony Abbott has dubbed Malcolm Turnbull’s downfall a “political suicide” as the pair lock horns in their latest public spat. This is how their relationship went from rocky, to rock bottom.

Tony Abbott has dubbed Malcolm Turnbull’s downfall a “political suicide” rather than a “political assassination” as the pair lock horns in their latest public spat.

Mr Abbott’s comments — reportedly made in a speech to the Oxford University Student Union last month — emerged today as Malcolm Turnbull took to Twitter to explain why he followed an Instagram page dedicated to getting Mr Abbott out of office.

It’s just the latest blow-up in a rivalry that has spanned 10 years and had disastrous consequences for the Liberal Party, which is now trying to rebuild in the wake of the latest leadership spill.

According to Fairfax Media, Mr Abbott told the meeting last month Mr Turnbull had brought the spill on himself, downplaying the almost three years he spent criticising his rival and speaking out against government policy from the backbench.

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Environmental protesters wearing Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott heads on the lawns of Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: Gary Ramage

“I don’t regard it as another political assassination because in the end it was the spill motion that the prime minister called on himself that brought about the change so I would say it was almost a form of political suicide rather than political assassination,” Mr Abbott said.

It’s a sign the two former leaders’ rivalry won’t be cooling down any time soon — particularly with Mr Abbott facing a campaign from GetUp to see him ousted from office after 24 years.

Their feud dates back to 2009 when Mr Abbott rolled Mr Turnbull to become Liberal leader while the party was in Opposition.

The change in opposition was largely due to Mr Turnbull’s support for Labor’s Climate Change Action Plan, which Mr Abbott strongly opposed.

This ignited an all-out brawl among the Liberals over climate change policy during Mr Turnbull’s 14-month reign as leader, with the party ultimately voting for Mr Abbott to take charge.

When he assumed the prime ministership in September 2013, Mr Abbott kept Mr Turnbull in Cabinet as Communications Minister to prevent any moves to oust him from the backbench.

Ultimately, Turnbull made it an opportunity to showcase his own leadership skills, which became fatal for Abbott when the party crashed in the opinion polls.

Malcolm Turnbull holding a press conference at Parliament House announcing he would be challenging Tony Abbott for the leadership in 2015. Picture: Kym Smith

Mr Turnbull went on TV regularly, citing horror Newspoll results and questioning Mr Abbott’s signature policies, which did a good job of sparking debate and shrouding doubt over Mr Abbott’s ability to lead.

Then in September 2015, Mr Turnbull announced he would be challenging Mr Abbott in a dramatic leadership ballot.

He savaged Mr Abbott’s leadership style when he announced the coup, saying “we need advocacy, not slogans”.

He said Mr Abbott was not “capable” of the “economic leadership” needed to run the country.

“Ultimately, the Prime Minister has not been capable of providing the economic leadership … he has not been capable of providing the economic confidence that business needs,” he said this afternoon.

“We need a style of leadership that … explains the challenges and how to seize the opportunities. A style of leadership that respects the people’s intelligence, that explains these complex issues and sets out the course of action we believe we should take and makes a case for it. We need advocacy, not slogans.”

The pair reportedly ignored each other at an event in Canberra last year. Picture: Gary Ramage

Mr Turnbull won by 10 votes, rolling Abbott just four days before his two year anniversary in the top job.

The new PM then opted to leave Mr Abbott on the backbench, a decision which allowed the bitter former leader to unleash on the Government.

Over the next three years, Abbott was free to criticise the government over its energy policy, immigration and to all but lead the campaign against same-sex marriage.

The instability ultimately led to the leadership spill which was sparked in August when conservatives led by Mr Abbott threatened to cross the floor over Mr Turnbull’s new energy and climate policy, the National Energy Guarantee, mirroring their first spat in 2009.

Peter Dutton was the challenger this time, but Abbott was instrumental in driving momentum for the coup.

Where the animosity will end, only time will tell.

Originally published as Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott: The decade long feud between former prime ministers