By James Massola
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Liberal MPs are increasingly frustrated by a "resistance movement" that has sprung up around former prime minister Tony Abbott.
They're also questioning why a like-minded group of conservative MPs have been attending lunches on Tuesdays in parliamentary sitting weeks that are organised by Immigration Minister Peter Dutton. The gatherings are being held in the so-called "Monkey Pod" meeting room - named after its timber table of monkey-pod, a tropical hardwood tree - in the ministerial wing.
In the past fortnight, conservative MPs including Mr Abbott, Kevin Andrews, Andrew Nikolic and Michael Sukkar have spoken out on national security issues such as Mr Dutton's exclusion from the national security committee and the need for Australia to consider "boots on the ground" in Syria.
At the same time Mr Abbott, Mr Dutton, Mr Nikolic and Mr Sukkar all attended the latest lunch on Tuesday, with the former prime minister bringing cake for his colleagues.
Former prime minister Tony Abbott.Credit: Andrew Meares
The quartet of conservatives were joined by fellow conservative MPs, senators and Abbott supporters Angus Taylor, Zed Seselja, Natasha Griggs, Craig Kelly and Ian Goodenough for the take-away meal.
The semi-regular lunches have raised eyebrows among Liberal MPs and are taking place against a backdrop of low-level internal sniping within the Coalition, despite a dramatic turn around in its fortunes since the September switch from Mr Abbott to Malcolm Turnbull.
The government is enjoying a commanding 53-47 per cent lead in the two-party preferred vote according to the latest Newspoll, while the lead is 56-44 per cent according to last week's Fairfax-Ipsos poll.
Fairfax Media has spoken to a dozen Liberal MPs about the so-called "resistance movement" and criticism of the government's national security stance in recent weeks. The MPs range from ministers to backbenchers and come from the conservative and moderate wings of the party.
The overwhelming view of those MPs is that, as one minister put it, Mr Abbott's supporters were "hanging on to the last vestiges of the Abbott days, when conservatives thought they could do or say whatever they liked".
"Government is actually functioning well again after the last two years, we are actually focusing on things that matter. Some of their comments on national security show an enormous naivety. We aren't concerned by these clowns."
A second minister, who backed Mr Abbott in the spill, said that Mr Turnbull should have kept more conservatives on the frontbench when he instituted a major reshuffle after taking power but that, regardless, "the reality is this has happened and most people have moved on".
"These are people who have time on their hands and they are agitating. Tony is in a zone where he can't accept what has happened, but the reality is, his destiny was in his own hands. For those who supported him, who are pragmatic, the reality is now Malcolm and wishful thinking will not change that."
How long will it take for Tony to realise he isn't coming back?
A third asked: "How long will it take for Tony to realise he isn't coming back?"
And a fourth minister said there was, in effect, an "Abbott government in exile" and that "they actually believe the public wants Abbott back".
Meanwhile, the lunches in the so-called Monkey Pod room, which started years ago at Timmy's Chinese restaurant in Canberra's inner south soon after Kevin Rudd became prime minister and originally included conservatives such as Bronwyn Bishop, Sophie Mirabella, Alby Schultz, Don Randall, Mr Dutton and, on occasion, Mr Abbott, have set Liberal MPs talking.
After the Coalition won government, the semi-regular Tuesday sitting week lunch was for some time held in Ms Bishop's office while she was Speaker.
One MP familiar with the lunches said the attendees included hardcore supporters of Mr Abbott and was "underground", but that some of the younger MPs who had attended recent lunches had been surprised that "they were talking about the resistance".
"The young ones remember how shit it was," the MP said, referring to the former Abbott government's political misfortunes.
That MP said disaffected conservatives were concerned about possible changes in policy and direction under Mr Turnbull, with national security and tax policy being a key worry.
But another MP who has attended played down their significance and said it was simply a social meeting of like-minded MPs.
That MP said they were "pretty casual" and that Mr Abbott was not a regular, despite attending the past two weeks.
Labor finance spokesman Tony Burke mocked the meeting in Parliament as one that brought together "those who yearn for the good old days" and were "plotting the return of the conservative forces".