The leak, just days after Mr Turnbull rolled Mr Abbott for the prime ministership, shows that of the 16 appointments made to boards in the communications portfolio, only one was a woman. Malcolm Turnbull Credit:Stefan Polates That appointment was made in December 2014, when Mr Turnbull and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann named Dominique Fisher as a non-executive director of Australia Post. In contrast, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton and his predecessor Scott Morrison oversaw the appointment of 36 women to boards. Workplace Minister Eric Abetz, who could be dumped from Mr Turnbull's new cabinet, also exceeded the 40 per cent target, as did Mr Abbott and Senator Cormann.

However it is understood that Mr Abbott's office, infamous for its micro-managing and authoritarian style, constantly held up board appointments. Also, the table does not account for Dr Kerry Schott and Alison Lansley, who were both reappointed to the NBN board under Mr Turnbull's watch. Mr Abbott has previously said he has no intention of undermining his successor Malcolm Turnbull, as former Labor prime minister Kevin Rudd did to Julia Gillard after she knifed him in 2010. In his first comment since his final statement to the nation as PM on Monday night, Mr Abbott told News Corp he intends to stay on in Parliament. "It's been a tumultuous week and I now intend to spend some time with my family to think about the future," Mr Abbott is quoted as saying.

"My intention is to remain in the Parliament." It's not known if, like Kevin Rudd, Mr Abbott would seek a cabinet post in Mr Turnbull's new-look frontbench. Mr Turnbull has promised to promote more women to his cabinet in contrast to Mr Abbott who appointed just one woman - deputy leader Julie Bishop - to his first cabinet, and promoted a second in his second line-up, announced in December last year. "There is no greater enthusiast than me for seeing more women in positions of power and influence in Parliament, in ministries right across the country, I can assure you of that. I am very committed to that," Mr Turnbull told journalists on Wednesday. Ripe for promotion is new mother and parliamentary secretary to the Treasurer Kelly O'Dwyer who, Fairfax Media has revealed, was advised to express more breast milk to stop her nursing preventing her attending parliamentary duties in the chamber.

Ms O'Dwyer was reported to be furious with the advice stemming from the Chief Government Whip's office, but has subsequently resolved the issue with Whip Scott Buchholz, who wasn't aware nursing mothers are given an automatic proxy vote under a rule introduced when Labor was in power in 2008. Follow us on Twitter Follow Latika Bourke on Facebook