Senior Liberals call for unity behind Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull

POLITICAL commentator Peta Credlin says cabinet ministers are losing faith in Malcolm Turnbull, suggesting he will knife the Liberal Party.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Picture: Adam Yip/Manly Daily

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POLITICAL commentator Peta Credlin says cabinet ministers are losing faith in Malcolm Turnbull, suggesting he will knife the Liberal Party, and defends Tony Abbott amid allegations he is undermining the government.

Peta Credlin says cabinet ministers are losing faith in Malcolm Turnbull. Picture: John Feder

Ms Credlin, who was Mr Abbott’s chief of staff during his prime ministership and previously worked for Mr Turnbull, hit out at the Prime Minister over comments he made on the weekend suggesting he would resign from parliament if he lost the prime ministership.

“I think they’re extraordinary comments, actually,” Ms Credlin told Sky News last night.

“The comments yesterday where he said basically ‘sack me and I’ll quit’, reinforced a lot of the concerns everyone’s always had about Malcolm and the Liberal Party.

Ms Credlin said it was well documented that Mr Turnbull had been close to Labor figures Gough Whitlam and Neville Wran and could just as easily have stood for the Labor Party as the Liberal Party.

“(The weekend’s comments) reinforced this question mark people have always had over the Prime Minister that it’s not about the Liberal Party, it’s not about conservative values, it’s actually about Malcolm, and as one of his cabinet colleagues said to me today, and this is extraordinary, he said; ‘This is the guy that knifed Peter King to get the seat, knifed Brendan (Nelson) to become leader, knifed Tony Abbott to become Prime Minister, and the next knife’s obviously coming the Liberal Party’s way,’ and I thought if colleagues are prepared to say that sort of stuff now, I’m not a journalist, I’m a former staffer, so they know me well, but that’s a pretty extraordinary comment to come from a cabinet colleague,” Ms Credlin said.

DIVISION IS DEATH

A NATIONALS senator is “fed up” with his coalition partners and wants the Liberal Party to stop its infighting.

Nationals Senator John Williams has slammed the infighting in the Liberals.

John Williams this morning reminded the Liberal Party that “division is death”, saying the debates, fuelled by the likes of Tony Abbott and Christopher Pyne, are taking away from the government’s achievements.

“That is very frustrating, it is very annoying and I’m just fed up with it,” he told ABC radio.

Senator Williams said the “in-house arguments” and their coverage in the media meant Bill Shorten and the Labor Party were getting a free ride. He urged Mr Abbott, who keeps rearing his head in set speeches to offer free advice, to be more of a team player.

“As we were with Tony when he was prime minister,” the senator said. “I certainly was — we had a couple of disagreements on the odd occasion but I think Tony needs to just fit into the team.”

He also cited Mr Pyne’s remarks to a Liberal Federal Council afterparty in which he claimed same-sex marriage could be achieved sooner than people think. Senator Williams warned any change to the government’s plebiscite policy would be in breach of the Liberal’s agreement with the Nationals.

“What would happen then — I don’t know for sure,” he said.

‘ABBOTT OUT OF CONTROL’

This comes as senior Liberals have called for an “out of control” Tony Abbott to show his support for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Treasurer Scott Morrison, Innovation Minister Arthur Sinodinos and Victorian State director Michael Kroger have all publicly called for unity behind Mr Turnbull, and urged fellow MPs to focus on governing for the 24 million Australians.

As Mr Sinodinos, a senior figure in the Howard government, said Mr Abbott could not be controlled, Mr Turnbull said he intends to be in the role of Prime Minister for “a very long time”, adding his age of 62 does not make him too old for the top job.

Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has drawn ire within his own party for his recent comments. Picture: AAP

“I will be running at the 2019 election and will win. So that’s my commitment,” Mr Turnbull said.

Mr Kroger said “as much as we admire and love Tony”, the situation “cannot continue”.

“Everyone’s got to get behind Malcolm Turnbull and forge on for the next election, which some people speculate could be next year,” he told Sky News.

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Mr Kroger said the Labor alternative was “terrible”.

“Liberal supporters acknowledge that Malcolm Turnbull has done an exceptional job in this terrible situation and we don’t like this dislocation going on,” he said.

Senator Arthur Sinodinos said Tony Abbott could not be controlled. Picture: Kym Smith

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said he intends to be in the job for a very long time. Picture: Adam Yip.

But Mr Abbott has shown no signs of taking a backward step, reigniting debate over party reform and stepping up his campaign to give members a say in preselections.

Mr Abbott has argued factional control is causing members to leave the Liberal Party in droves, where candidates chosen by factional bosses are supported ahead of strong community figures.

Mr Morrison, a former NSW state director, yesterday declined to take a strong position on the issue of plebiscites and said it was a matter for party members to vote on.

“I think in a public forum MPs will go and score their points or do whatever they want to do but at the end of the day this is a decision for party members,” he said.