Former prime minister Tony Abbott has urged his sympathisers in the New South Wales Liberals to wrestle back control of the party from powerbrokers.

Key points: Abbott urges Liberal conservatives to "take our party back"

Abbott urges Liberal conservatives to "take our party back" Says great thing about Liberal Party is "we have always respected our leaders"

Says great thing about Liberal Party is "we have always respected our leaders" Recent speeches seen by Turnbull camp as bid to undermine PM

The now backbencher is demanding an overhaul of the Liberal state branch, but many in the party have accused him of stoking a broader factional brawl between moderates and conservatives.

There is a heated debate bubbling away in the New South Wales division over whether to adopt a Victorian-style plebiscite model to empower branch members in preselecting candidates.

Mr Abbott made the comments at a gathering of conservative Liberals, billed as a "Call to Arms for the Forgotten People of our Party".

He warned his colleagues of the threat from the Labor Party, backed by the war chests of the union movement, come the next election.

"The only way we can be a real people's movement is if we respect the people, above all else if we respect the people who are in our party," he argued.

"So let's take our party back, and then we can win the next election!"

The call to arms was met with rousing applause and cheers by those gathered at the function.

Tony Abbott poses for a selfie at the Liberal Party Democratic Reform event in Sydney. ( AAP: Brendan Esposito )

Mr Abbott has given a number of speeches this week outlining his vision for government and criticising decisions of senior ministers, which Malcolm Turnbull's loyalists have seen as a bid to undermine the Prime Minister.

Mr Abbott told the party faithful they had seemingly been forgotten by those in the Liberal hierarchy.

"The great thing about the Liberal Party is we have always respected our leaders," Mr Abbott said.

"You go along and join a branch, you respect the president. You go along to the state council, you respect the state executive.

"You elect a member of parliament, you give that person great respect.

"We have a Prime Minister, maximum respect.

"But respect is a two-way street, it's got to be a two-way street and it's time the party hierarchy showed the respect to the membership the membership has always given to them."

'We are letting ourselves down'

Mr Abbott described the current operation of the party as a "tragedy", saying the Liberal hierarchy had "expected the rank and file to turn up, to pay up, and to shut up".

"It's just not right, we are letting ourselves down," he said.

After the event, Mr Abbott said he was not preparing a leadership challenge, and remained a "servant of the party".

Turnbull Government frontbencher Angus Taylor also addressed the function, and was at pains to emphasise the need for structural reform of the party should not be viewed as a factional war.

He went as far as to say that it was not a case of "Turnbull versus Abbott, or Abbott versus Turnbull".