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| Tony Abbott refuses to name his preferred candidate for Speaker | Tony Abbott refuses to name his preferred candidate for Speaker |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Tony Abbott has moved to play down his personal influence over the choice of the next Speaker, saying he will not name his preferred candidate to replace Bronwyn Bishop and will be “just one vote in the party room” on Monday. | Tony Abbott has moved to play down his personal influence over the choice of the next Speaker, saying he will not name his preferred candidate to replace Bronwyn Bishop and will be “just one vote in the party room” on Monday. |
| Related: Coalition MPs demand proper say on next Speaker as Bronwyn Bishop quits | Related: Coalition MPs demand proper say on next Speaker as Bronwyn Bishop quits |
| In an attempt to placate Liberal colleagues who have warned him against making another unilateral “captain’s pick”, the prime minister said he respected all of the candidates and would not publicise his preference. | |
| Liberal sources told Guardian Australia the three leading contenders - Tony Smith, Russell Broadbent and Andrew Southcott - have been lobbying their colleagues about their suitability for the role based on their ability to be a stable, calming influence on the parliament. | |
| Fellow Liberal MPs Philip Ruddock and Ross Vasta have also expressed their interest in the key parliamentary role but are considered to have a lower chance. | |
| Sunday marks six months since Abbott survived a spill motion against his leadership in the Liberal party room and declared afterwards that “good government starts today”. | Sunday marks six months since Abbott survived a spill motion against his leadership in the Liberal party room and declared afterwards that “good government starts today”. |
| Abbott recast that declaration on Sunday, saying he believed that “every day since the [September 2013] election has been a day of good government” but occasionally there were distractions, including the 9 February spill motion and the controversy about politicians’ expenses in recent weeks. | Abbott recast that declaration on Sunday, saying he believed that “every day since the [September 2013] election has been a day of good government” but occasionally there were distractions, including the 9 February spill motion and the controversy about politicians’ expenses in recent weeks. |
| A ReachTel poll published by Fairfax Media on Sunday showed the Coalition remained in an election-losing position, with the government attracting 47% of the vote after preferences compared with 53% for the Labor opposition. | A ReachTel poll published by Fairfax Media on Sunday showed the Coalition remained in an election-losing position, with the government attracting 47% of the vote after preferences compared with 53% for the Labor opposition. |
| Labor’s Bill Shorten (58.5%) enjoyed a clear lead over Abbott (41.5%) as preferred prime minister but both men were unpopular compared with alternative leadership options within their respective parties. | Labor’s Bill Shorten (58.5%) enjoyed a clear lead over Abbott (41.5%) as preferred prime minister but both men were unpopular compared with alternative leadership options within their respective parties. |
| About 48% of respondents said they were less likely to support Abbott because of the controversy surrounding Bishop’s expenses, compared with 15% who said they were more likely to do so and 37% who were unswayed. | About 48% of respondents said they were less likely to support Abbott because of the controversy surrounding Bishop’s expenses, compared with 15% who said they were more likely to do so and 37% who were unswayed. |
| The prime minister declined to say whether the new Speaker should stop attending party room meetings – a gesture of independence that Labor and some people within government ranks have argued is a way to draw a line under Bishop’s perceived partisanship. | The prime minister declined to say whether the new Speaker should stop attending party room meetings – a gesture of independence that Labor and some people within government ranks have argued is a way to draw a line under Bishop’s perceived partisanship. |
| Related: Bronwyn Bishop travel expenses scandal: how it unfolded – timeline | Related: Bronwyn Bishop travel expenses scandal: how it unfolded – timeline |
| Abbott said the question of participation in party room meetings would be “a matter for the Speaker”. | Abbott said the question of participation in party room meetings would be “a matter for the Speaker”. |
| “There are a number of people who have indicated they’re likely to run,” Abbott said during a visit to the south-east Queensland marginal seat of Petrie, where he made a $4m sports funding announcement. “All of them are my friends and my colleagues. All of them have my respect. | “There are a number of people who have indicated they’re likely to run,” Abbott said during a visit to the south-east Queensland marginal seat of Petrie, where he made a $4m sports funding announcement. “All of them are my friends and my colleagues. All of them have my respect. |
| “I’m not going to indicate a preference because I’m just one vote in the party room tomorrow. That’s all I am: just one vote in the party room tomorrow. The best candidate will be the one who is most able to command the chamber and most able to command respect from both sides of the chamber.” | “I’m not going to indicate a preference because I’m just one vote in the party room tomorrow. That’s all I am: just one vote in the party room tomorrow. The best candidate will be the one who is most able to command the chamber and most able to command respect from both sides of the chamber.” |
| The election of the new Speaker will be the first item of business when the House of Representatives resumes at 10am on Monday. | The election of the new Speaker will be the first item of business when the House of Representatives resumes at 10am on Monday. |
| The Liberals will hold a party room meeting beforehand to select their nominee to replace Bishop, who resigned from her position after coming under pressure for a series of expenses claims including $5,227 for return chartered helicopter flights from Melbourne to Geelong to attend a Liberal fundraiser. | The Liberals will hold a party room meeting beforehand to select their nominee to replace Bishop, who resigned from her position after coming under pressure for a series of expenses claims including $5,227 for return chartered helicopter flights from Melbourne to Geelong to attend a Liberal fundraiser. |
| Labor has not revealed whether it will put forward its own nominee for the speakership, but it does not have the numbers in the lower house to win such a vote. | |
| Shorten has previously spoken favourably about the credentials of the retiring Nationals MP Bruce Scott, and said Liberal MPs Smith or Broadbent “would both be good” in the role. | |
| On Sunday the opposition leader called on Abbott to ensure the winner did not attend party room meetings. | |
| “This mess was entirely of his own making and he now has an obligation to restore some integrity to the parliament and to the role of the Speaker,” Shorten said. | |
| “We cannot afford for parliament to repeat the hyper-partisanship we saw under Bronwyn Bishop. He [Abbott] created the mess by installing his captain’s pick Bronwyn Bishop and he must ensure history doesn’t repeat itself.” | |
| The Bishop scandal led to renewed scrutiny of the expenses claims of MPs and senators from all political parties and prompted the government to launch a “root and branch” review of the entitlements system, with a report due next year. | |
| Abbott suggested politicians making travel claims should look to the private sector and take care to avoid doing “the sorts of things that would be inappropriate for people in business”. | Abbott suggested politicians making travel claims should look to the private sector and take care to avoid doing “the sorts of things that would be inappropriate for people in business”. |
| Reflecting on his broader political fortunes, Abbott said he was determined to “not to allow the distractions to stop you from getting on with the job of governing”. | Reflecting on his broader political fortunes, Abbott said he was determined to “not to allow the distractions to stop you from getting on with the job of governing”. |
| “Look, it’s never about me if I may say so,” he said when asked the expenses controversy hurting his standing in the opinion polls. | “Look, it’s never about me if I may say so,” he said when asked the expenses controversy hurting his standing in the opinion polls. |
| Related: Politicians’ entitlements and expenses: help investigate four years of data | Related: Politicians’ entitlements and expenses: help investigate four years of data |
| “Everything that this government does is about the long-term good of the people of Australia and, while you have good days and better days in a job like this, as far as I’m concerned every day should be about doing the right thing by the people of Australia.” | “Everything that this government does is about the long-term good of the people of Australia and, while you have good days and better days in a job like this, as far as I’m concerned every day should be about doing the right thing by the people of Australia.” |
| The leader of the Greens, Richard Di Natale, said people were disillusioned and disgusted with politicians for engaging in “day-to-day bickering” and partisanship rather than focusing on the national interest. | The leader of the Greens, Richard Di Natale, said people were disillusioned and disgusted with politicians for engaging in “day-to-day bickering” and partisanship rather than focusing on the national interest. |
| “I’m worried about the way we’re going to elect the next Speaker; we’re just going to get another partisan hack, someone who’s rewarded for time-serving inside the government,” Di Natale told the ABC’s Insiders program. | “I’m worried about the way we’re going to elect the next Speaker; we’re just going to get another partisan hack, someone who’s rewarded for time-serving inside the government,” Di Natale told the ABC’s Insiders program. |
| “We need to review the process for the election of Speaker. We’ve got to reform question time, which is really a waste of time. There are so many things that we need to do to reform our parliament.” | “We need to review the process for the election of Speaker. We’ve got to reform question time, which is really a waste of time. There are so many things that we need to do to reform our parliament.” |
| Labor’s shadow treasurer, Chris Bowen, backed the review of the entitlements system, noting the scandals had made it hard for political parties to announce any policy over the past three weeks. | Labor’s shadow treasurer, Chris Bowen, backed the review of the entitlements system, noting the scandals had made it hard for political parties to announce any policy over the past three weeks. |
| Bowen said one of the problems with Bishop’s spending was that it came after the government had “been lecturing people about the age of entitlement”. | Bowen said one of the problems with Bishop’s spending was that it came after the government had “been lecturing people about the age of entitlement”. |
| “We need to have regard to the standing of the parliament and politicians, and clearly that’s come in for some attack,” Bowen told the Australian Agenda program on Sky News. | “We need to have regard to the standing of the parliament and politicians, and clearly that’s come in for some attack,” Bowen told the Australian Agenda program on Sky News. |
| “Now, we got here ... because of one individual’s clearly inappropriate actions and, frankly, the prime minister’s poor handling of that over a period of three weeks, as I recall. That’s how we got here.” | “Now, we got here ... because of one individual’s clearly inappropriate actions and, frankly, the prime minister’s poor handling of that over a period of three weeks, as I recall. That’s how we got here.” |
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