ERROL PARKER | Editor-at-large | Contact

Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has weighed in on the ongoing crisis within the Coalition government surrounding embattled MP Gladys Liu, telling The Advocate this morning that he doesn’t care and doesn’t want to be contacted by our newspaper herein.

Speaking to our reporter this morning via telephone, Malcolm explained that he’s retired and that means The Advocate shouldn’t be approaching him for comment on the day-to-day happenings within the Liberal Party.

“Please just leave me alone. Stop calling this number,” he said.

“I don’t care about Gladys Liu’s links to the Chinese Communist Party. I don’t know Gladys Liu and I probably never will. This is Scott’s problem, not mine. Now good night. Do you know what the time is here?”

Mr Turnbull didn’t wait for an answer before hanging the phone up.

That’s typical Malcolm, said his Labor cousin Kevin Rudd.

Mr Rudd was more than happy to field a call from our reporter this morning on the Gladys Liu crisis, making it clear to The Advocate that she’s clearly a political threat to Scott Morrison and he should probably ask her to step down.

“Of course Malcolm told you to fuck off,” said Kevin.

“That’s such a Malcolm thing to do. But it’s clear to me, an expert on China and how they operate, that Gladys poses a clear and present danger to the national security of Australia but China on the whole, doesn’t. Does that make sense?”

Our reporter told Mr Rudd that he didn’t know.

Mr Rudd said he didn’t either and put the phone down.

More to come.

