Tony Abbott delivers his final barbs as he steps into the wilderness
|
Version 0 of 1. It was to his Christian faith that former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott turned to draw inspiration on his last day in office, quoting the Psalms “what shall I render unto the Lord for all his blessings to me?” He didn’t look blessed. But perhaps it was his faith that eventually gave the former trainee priest the steel to come out and make a final statement and resign his commission to the governor general Peter Cosgrove. The party room that delivered the fatal vote which elevated Malcolm Turnbull, a merchant banker and barrister, to the top job was held at 9pm on Monday night. Australia has had some practice at leadership spills by now, having had five prime ministers in as many years. But as in all things, Abbott, broke the mould. He did not appear on Monday night and for the first half of Tuesday, he was a ghost. Related: No love lost: the quest to find anyone who supports Tony Abbott in Manly The hashtag #whereistony started trending on Twitter and for that time, Australia steered on unaided by a prime minister. Labor introduced a motion which called on the government to “end its internal arguments and actually govern the country and if it can’t, to restore the selection of the prime minister to the people in an election, where it should be”. It meant that on his first day in office, Turnbull’s hands were tied. As designated PM, he had his first meeting of the Liberal leadership, a meeting with the director-general of security at Asio, Duncan Lewis, and negotiations with his junior Coalition partner. But question time beckoned. Who would lead the government? Eventually Abbott called the press to his courtyard at 12.30pm. The ministerial corridors were filled with staff moving in and out, carrying files and gifts of congratulations or condolence. Finally, Abbott strode to his podium, with weary red-rimmed eyes. As a man who benefited greatly from Murdoch media might, he decried incessant “polls and more commentary” which he labelled “mostly sour, bitter, character assassination”. One man’s treachery is another man’s opportunity. “Poll-driven panic has produced a revolving door prime ministership which can’t be good for our country and a febrile media culture has developed that rewards treachery,” Abbott said. “And if there’s one piece of advice I can give to the media, it’s this: refuse to print self-serving claims that the person making them won’t put his or her name to; refuse to connive at dishonour by acting as the assassin’s knife.” Related: Tony Abbott takes swipe at 'febrile' media in last speech as prime minister There was nothing that Labor would love more than to restore Abbott to the job. Abbott has been known globally for his equivocal statements on climate science, his removal of Labor’s carbon price and his hardline refugee policy which caused a New York Times editorial to lash Australia for its “brutal treatment of migrants”. And to prove he could create his own unique problems, he gained notoriety for restoring knighthoods and dames and delivered the first one to Prince Philip. Having survived a spill attempt once in February, he was comprehensively ambushed on Monday. In spite of trenchant opposition to Turnbull from his own conservatives, Abbott lost votes because his standing in the opinion polls was consistently below Bill Shorten’s numbers, notwithstanding the Labor leader’s lacklustre performance. The irony was that Turnbull, a former Liberal opposition leader, was originally dumped by the conservative end of the Liberal party for his progressive views on climate change. So it was that the coup came about, brought forward in the parliamentary sitting week ahead of the Canning byelection, which was to determine the future of Abbott. Canning voters did not get a chance. The Liberal party did it for them. It is never pretty and there were the usual recriminations, disappointments and blame. Australia’s Northern Territory News tabloid screamed “Rich dude becomes PM”. When Turnbull finally got sworn in by the governor general, he appeared somewhat humbled and emotional as he posed for photographs. It was quite a feat for the wealthy lawyer who made his money out of new technology and made his name on the Spycatcher case. Question time, after the last 48 hours, was rather ho hum. Turnbull and Shorten paid tribute to Abbott, as people always do after their opponent is toast. Labor rolled out the obvious attack around disloyalty and treachery. They dragged the treasurer Joe Hockey up to the dispatch box to defend the government, an unenviable task given Hockey will lose his job in a Turnbull ministry. In Australia, it’s called eating a shit sandwich. Related: Tony Abbott was prime minister for fewer days than Gillard or Rudd – chart For all the excitement, Turnbull’s backbench were subdued, probably still in shock from the previous nights event’s. The prime minister’s wife, Lucy, and family watched from the gallery. His father in law, Tom Hughes, a Liberal attorney general from the 1970s, gazed upon him with what looked like satisfaction – a granite reminder of the new leader’s lineage. Perhaps it was luck. Some might argue it was destiny. Turnbull probably doesn’t care. He is Australia’s 29th prime minister and nothing could now erase that or the smile from his face. |