Coalition ministers hope their blistering attack on Tony Abbott has finally silenced him ahead of Federal Parliament's return but the former prime minister's most loyal confidante says he's not going anywhere, declaring Malcolm Turnbull's government is "on life support".

While the Prime Minister and his team will seek to shift the attention back to energy security and their budget savings bill, Labor will exploit the latest round of leadership tensions while also pressuring the government over the Fair Work Commission's penalty rate cuts.

While government MPs want to regroup after last week's damaging public display following a speech by Mr Abbott in which he said the Coalition had become "Labor lite" and was "drifting to defeat", Peta Credlin has weighed in with a damning assessment of her own.

While conceding Mr Abbott could have handled his intervention better, Ms Credlin – his controversial former chief of staff – says he has a right to speak out on policy as a "custodian" of the party's right-wing base, amid fears they are fleeing to One Nation and its ilk.