PM says Abbott has to ‘form his own judgment’ on whether he should have commented on submarine policy based on leaked defence documents

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

Malcolm Turnbull believes his predecessor Tony Abbott should continue to express his views but says “it’s very important that as prime minister I set the record straight”.

Turnbull said on Friday that Abbott had to “form his own judgment” on whether he should have commented on Australia’s submarine policy, for a news report based on leaked defence documents.

Abbott’s comments to the Australian newspaper – that he was “flabbergasted” at an apparent decision to delay the acquisition of 12 new submarines – had been contradicted by senior defence officials, Turnbull said.



“The expert advice to the Australian government on the submarine program and as to its timing has been consistent since 2013, and that is you take the word of Dennis Richardson, the secretary of the defence department.

“Tony expressed a different perspective, but the people who have been giving the government advice for that period made it very, very plain.

“I respect Tony’s right to speak his mind and he should continue to do so, but it’s very important that as prime minister I set the record straight,” he said.

Former and current Liberals continued to be asked about the leak on Friday. Frontbencher Matthias Corman told Sky News that Abbott was no Kevin Rudd.

The finance minister said the Liberal party was “obviously” still working through tensions over the September spill that felled Abbott as prime minister.



But Cormann balked at comparisons to the leadership tussle between the former Labor leaders Rudd and Julia Gillard.

“Tony Abbott is no Kevin Rudd, so you don’t see the same at this stage – and I don’t expect we would ever be like the Labor party, we are a very united team,” Cormann said.



He accepted Abbott’s denial that he was responsible for the leak but said he wished the former leader had not publicly commented on the draft submarine acquisition plans published on Wednesday. “But he has,” Cormann said.

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Abbott made no reference to the week’s drama at a Liberal party event in Hobart, where he called for party members to rally around the government.

“Prudent, frugal government, competent management: that’s what we offer,” Abbott said. “I want to say that all of us can best help our country right now by redoubling our efforts to the party, by joining the Liberal party, and by working as hard as we possibly can to give Australia the best possible government over the next term.”

The frontbencher Christopher Pyne defended Abbott on Friday, parrying suggestions the former prime minister was the source of the sensitive documents, leaked to Abbott’s close friend, the journalist Greg Sheridan.

“I wouldn’t raise matters like the leak with Mr Abbott because I wouldn’t immediately assume it was him,” Pyne told the Nine Network on Friday.



Turnbull told parliament on Wednesday the Australian federal police had been called in to investigate the leak.

Despite the police involvement, the Liberal backbencher Dennis Jensen said the story was a media beat up and journalists were going “way over the top”.



“It’s a nice, interesting news story but there’s nothing happening internally,” he told ABC radio.

But a former Howard-era minister, Peter Reith, disagreed, saying Abbott’s comments to Sheridan that he was “flabbergasted” by an apparent delay in acquiring new submarines would hurt the government.

“I don’t think there is any doubt that Tony’s remarks were a classic case of deliberate destabilisation,” he told Sky News.



His behaviour would go down badly with Abbott’s colleagues, especially in an election year, Reith said. “They will not be pleased with him.”