Nick Greiner says Tony Abbott is partly to blame for Liberal division

Liberal Party federal president Nick Greiner yesterday lashed Tony Abbott for his role in the government’s leadership crisis.

Tony Abbott at his home in Forestville, Sydney, yesterday. Picture: Britta Campion

Liberal Party federal president Nick Greiner yesterday lashed Tony Abbott for his role in the government’s leadership crisis, urging the former prime minister to use his talents to fight Labor rather than waging internal wars.

Mr Greiner, a former NSW premier who was Malcolm Turnbull’s choice as party president, said Mr Abbott should take some of the blame for the division in government ranks.

“He has part of the blame. His behaviour has been, as I have often said, more focused internally than where his skills are best used,” Mr Greiner told Sky News.

“Tony is an excellent political salesman, a political warrior; he should have been spending his time — and I of course said this to him — much more on bringing down our political opponents rather than focusing on internal differences.

“I am hopeful, and I take it from his remarks, that will not happen in the future.”

Mr Greiner would not say whether Mr Abbott should leave parliament.

“There are obvious options. I don’t mind what option various individuals in the parliamentary party take; that is for them. The important thing is the outcome that, whether they are in Timbuktu or Canberra, they have their focus 100 per cent on having the ­Coalition in the best position to win next year,” he said.

Mr Greiner’s slapdown of Mr Abbott came after the former prime minister wrote to his constituents in Warringah and vowed to be loyal to Scott Morrison. He also blamed Mr Turnbull for his own downfall, declaring the member for Wentworth would still be in the top job if he had not called a spill against himself.

“I’m sure things would not have come to a head but for the former PM’s decision to call a pre-emptive spill last Tuesday,” Mr Abbott wrote in an email to local Liberal members. “But for that, seven cabinet ministers would not have felt compelled to resign.

“As someone who believes in democratic accountability, I’m sorry that he then tried to save his job by threatening a by-election and stalling MPs’ chance to vote.

“Eventually, though, the partyroom had its say and now we all have a government to save and a country to help.”

Mr Abbott wrote that it was “shameless” Mr Turnbull spoke about treachery at his final press conference. “Given his history, this was pretty shameless,” Mr ­Abbott wrote.

“With a new leadership team now in place, I’m confident that there will be no more duplicity and off-the-record media backstabbing and that our policy direction will be clear.

“I am making contact to assure you that Prime Minister Scott Morrison and new deputy Josh Frydenberg will have my full support to win the next election. This is an important reset for our party and, with all my colleagues, I’m ­determined to put the past behind and work with the new team.”

Former prime minister John Howard said Mr Abbott remained “unreconciled” about losing the party leadership in a 2015 coup.

“He has remained unreconciled, clearly, to his removal,” Mr Howard said in Canberra yesterday. “He argues, both publicly and privately: ‘I got the government into power with a 30-odd seat ­majority and I was removed in the name of preventing a loss at the next election and the person who replaced me almost lost the next election’.

“You have got to put yourself in (the shoes of) the person who is removed. I don’t want to sit in judgment on the reactions of an individual.”