Malcolm Turnbull walked the high wire in a masterful Q&A performance on Monday night, as he displayed his credentials for leadership. Turnbull was neither loyal nor disloyal to Tony Abbott. He ran…
In the battles within the government between now and May, Treasurer Joe Hockey will lack the degree of authority he could deploy a year ago.
AAP/Lukas Coch
The Liberals have drawn a line under the leadership issue for the moment, but this week’s unsuccessful spill motion has changed fundamentally the dynamics within the government and the party. Malcolm Turnbull…
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull earlier this week linked the Liberals’ leadership crisis to “bullying” by journalists covering Australian politics. He was not suggesting, I don’t think, that the…
Could a Turnbull-Abbott partnership be the circuit breaker the government needs?
Lukas Coch/AAP
In the wake of Monday’s attempted Liberal leadership spill, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott clearly needs to do something to shore up support. He’s been offered all manner of unsolicited advice…
Since Kevin Rudd welcomed Tony Abbott to The Lodge 17 months ago, startling parallels between the prime ministerial struggles of the two populist leaders have emerged.
AAP/Alan Porritt
The unsuccessful Liberal leadership spill on Monday arose from two disjunctures: between the electorate and the political class, and the leadership and backbench. This former disjuncture has occurred since…
Prime Minister Tony Abbott arrived with a large group of MPs, including deputy leader Julie Bishop.
AAP/Mick Tsikas
Tony Abbott has held at bay a move to depose him. The Liberal party room voted against a spill motion by 61 to 39 – but the narrow margin leaves the prime minister deeply vulnerable to later destabilisation…
Prime Minister Tony Abbott needs not just to see off the spill motion. A significant dissident vote would leave him a dead leader walking.
AAP/Quentin Jones
Liberal MPs who must decide whether to spill the leadership are confronted by a Newspoll that’s truly shocking for embattled Prime Minister Tony Abbott. Labor has a massive 57-43% lead in two-party terms…
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop at an event on Sunday.
AAP/Nikki Short
Malcolm Turnbull has effectively flagged he would be a candidate if the leadership became vacant in a successful spill on Monday. Although remaining coy about his intentions, Turnbull told reporters: “If…
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s stubborn and capricious style has alienated the public and his backbench.
AAP/Mick Tsikas
Update: Tony Abbott has won the leadership ballot 61-39. For the latest updates follow Michelle Grattan’s articles here. After his triumph in September 2013, Australian prime minister Tony Abbott faces…
If Prime Minister Tony Abbott fends off the spill motion the size of the margin is important.
AAP/Nikki Short
Liberal MPs will confront a stark choice next week between propping up a deeply wounded prime minister or trying a fresh start. They know each course is fraught with big risks. With the crucial vote not…
University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor Stephen Parker and Michelle Grattan discuss the week in politics including whether or not Prime Minister Tony Abbott should step down, how likely it is to happen…
Malcolm Turnbull rides the train to a politics in the pub event on Thursday night.
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When Malcolm Turnbull appeared at Thursday night’s politics in the pub on the NSW central coast the first questioner demanded to know whether he was interested in being leader. Turnbull dodged around but…
Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s press club address was more pedestrian than inspiring.
AAP/Mick Tsikas
The Liberal Party remains volatile and Tony Abbott’s position precarious after a National Press Club performance that avoided disaster but did not convince the doubters among his followers. Abbott gave…
Jumping to Julie Bishop or Malcolm Turnbull would be tempting but have plenty of problems.
AAP/Alan Porritt
The federal Liberals are in a funk, with the increasing realisation that Tony Abbott could be unelectable in 2016. But getting out of their hole is about more than a change of face. The options are stark…
Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he regretted the distraction his knighthood for Prince Philip had caused in the Queensland election campaign.
AAP/Wayne King
The Abbott government would face a devastating rebuff if an election were held now, losing some 36 seats on a uniform 7.5% swing, according to a Fairfax/Ipsos poll published on Sunday. The poll, taken…
Prime Minister Tony Abbott listens to Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
AAP/Alan Porritt
Leaders must be “explainers and advocates, unravelling complex issues in clear language”, Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said, outlining a strategy for selling hard economic messages. Turnbull…
Earlier this year, I attended a dinner for about 150 people. The first thing we all did was head for the bar to grab a drink, swamping the staff and setting back the dinner schedule by nearly two hours…
Treasurer Joe Hockey has sought to make a virtue of what will be a substantial worsening of the projected deficits.
AAP/Lukas Coch
Some barnacles are not, it seems, able to be removed – certainly not in time for Christmas. As the political year grinds to its end, the Prime Minister’s Office is under almost as much attack as that of…
Service providers will be given more responsibility when it comes to stopping illegal downloads … but will it be a deterrent?
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Nicolas Suzor, Queensland University of Technology and Eleanor Angel, Queensland University of Technology
Attorney-General George Brandis and Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced yesterday that they expect internet service providers (ISPs) to work with copyright owners to help police infringement…
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has been floated by anonymous sources to journalists as an alternative to Treasurer Joe Hockey.
AAP/Alan Porritt
Among its many problems, the Abbott government is showing distinctly cannibalistic tendencies. It’s not just a matter of the odd leak, which happens in the healthiest of administrations. This is serious…