I don’t support Vote Tony Out, Malcolm Turnbull says

Tony Abbott says he hopes Malcolm Turnbull will give him a hand in retaining his Warringah seat at the next election.

Malcolm Turnbull says he is not backing a campaign to unseat Tony Abbott by following an Instagram account dedicated to ousting the latter from parliament.

Malcolm Turnbull says he is not backing a campaign to unseat Tony Abbott by following an Instagram account dedicated to ousting the latter from parliament.

The former prime minister took to Twitter this morning to say his following of the “Vote Tony Out” account did “not imply approval or endorsement” of any moves against his predecessor as Liberal leader and decades-long political rival.

“It’s pretty obvious really but following someone on Instagram or Twitter does not imply support approval or endorsement — simply that you are for whatever reason currently interested in seeing the followed person’s posts in your feed,” he tweeted.

“And another equally obvious point. The more you try to bully people into NOT reading something the more they will do so. Freedom matters.”

It’s pretty obvious really but following someone on Instagram or Twitter does not imply support approval or endorsement - simply that you are for whatever reason currently interested in seeing the followed person’s posts in your feed. 1/2

— Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) November 21, 2018

And another equally obvious point. The more you try to bully people into NOT reading something the more they will do so. Freedom matters. 2/2

— Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) November 21, 2018

The “Vote Tony Out” account is also followed by his wife Lucy Turnbull as well as his outspoken son Alex who has previously used Twitter to support rival of the Liberal Party.

The Australian revealed yesterday that the Roseville branch of the Liberal Party passed a motion calling on Mr Turnbull to be expelled, in part because the former PM had followed the Instagram account as well as his failure to help Dave Sharma during the Wentworth by-election.

Mr Abbott said while the actions of the Roseville branch were “radical”, every Liberal member had a duty to support party candidates.

“I think it would be a pretty radical thing for a political party to no longer want someone who had until very recently led it and I’m not normally in support of radical things,” he told 2GB last night.

“But it is certainly the duty of all Liberals to work for and not against Liberal candidates.

Mr Abbott said he hoped Mr Turnbull would give him a hand at the next election.

“Malcolm gave me plenty of support in Warringah last time and if he’s going to get involved at all, that’s what I’d be hoping for this time.”

Mr Abbott said he did not assume Mr Turnbull was backing a grassroots campaign — backed by the likes of GetUp! — to oust him from his seat of Warringah by liking the account.

“Maybe he’s just keeping an eye on them so he can help me more effectively,” Mr Abbott said.

“There are lots of people who follow sites not because they particularly support the site but because they want to know what the bad guys are up to. That’s the interpretation I’d like to put on it.”

Mr Turnbull has been under pressure from within the Liberal Party ever since he was removed as Prime Minister and resigned as the Member for Wentworth, which costed Scott Morrison his majority in the House of Representatives.

Former prime minister Tony Abbott at the launch of a new book by Kevin Donnelly at the Sofitel Wentworth Hotel in Sydney this week.