JOE O'BRIEN, 7.30 PRESENTER: The Abbott government's 2014 budget is remembered for being one of the harshest in recent memory with the Medicare co-payment, university fee deregulation and the deficit levy some of the key measures.

It's also seen by many as being the beginning of the end of Tony Abbott's leadership, but according to documents obtained by the ABC, it could have been even harsher.

Cabinet's powerful razor gang consider a proposal that would have banned anyone under 30 accessing income support.

Senator Eric Abetz was the Employment Minister at the time.

He joins us from Hobart.

Senator Abetz, welcome.

EDDIE ABETZ, SENATOR, LIBERAL PARTY: Good evening. Good to be on the program.

JOE O'BRIEN: So Senator, under what circumstances would it be reasonable for an Australian Government to deny income support for anyone under 30?

EDDIE ABETZ: Look, the document you had was one of many submissions that the government looked at at the time.

And of course, as history shows, it was not adopted.

And so, that is where this story, quite frankly, begins and ends: It was something that was put to us and it was not adopted.

What we as a government were seeking to do was to encourage as many people as possible into employment.

And if they weren't able to be in employment, then into study, work for the dole, so they were doing something useful for themselves and society.

JOE O'BRIEN: So are there any circumstances which would warrant such a policy?

EDDIE ABETZ: Look, I was not supportive of the idea and, indeed, history shows that nor was the Abbott Government because that proposition did not proceed.

But, as an incoming government you have a look at a whole suite of policies and then ask for information them, consider them and determine the utility of the various suggestions and proposals and so we looked at a whole gamut of opportunities and possibilities and of course the one to which you refer did not see the light of day.

JOE O'BRIEN: But if there was no chance that such a policy was going to be introduced, is that a wise use of taxpayer funds?

You're someone who's called for cuts to the public service, you think it should be as efficient as possible.

What's the point in getting public servants to go chasing costings on policies that would never be introduced.

EDDIE ABETZ: As an incoming government in particular, one seeks the whole gamut of opportunities and possibilities so that the committee that is charged with looking at policy can consider whether or not particular ideas are good, bad or indifferent and it's very clear that this was seen as not a good policy and there was not implemented.

To try to rehash this somehow three, four years after the event is interesting but doesn't lead us anywhere other than this particular proposal that was put forward by a group within the bureaucracy and was not adopted by the elected government.

JOE O'BRIEN: Now, moving on to broader issues, back in 2016, you said, you warned that the Coalition was headed for electoral disaster in 2019 if it didn't listen to its base.

To what extent since then has Malcolm Turnbull listened to the base?

EDDIE ABETZ: Well, we have been listening to the Australian people, especially over the summer break.

We are seeking to implement policies that will see jobs' growth, that will see the economy turn around and jobs' growth in recent times has been, I think, a very successful hallmark of the current government and at the end of the day, getting somebody into a job is the best possible social security policy that any government can pursue and implement and therefore seeing this jobs' growth in recent times is, for me as a former Employment Minister, exceptionally encouraging, because knowing that people are in gainful employment, there are just so many benefits from that, people's mental health, their whole wellbeing is enhanced by being in gainful employment.

JOE O'BRIEN: Has the Prime Minister won back the base?

EDDIE ABETZ: Well the opinion polls will speak for themselves.

We have another 18 months or so to run for this Government and I simply say to my fellow Australians, the choice is very simple - the Liberal-National Party Government, or a government led by Bill Shorten?

And I think that if Australians take stock of that stark possibility then the decision will be clear, that it has to be a Liberal-National Party Government whenever the election might be held.

JOE O'BRIEN: Tony Abbott says we will hear a lot more from him this year about ending what he calls the emissions obsession and scaling back immigration.

Does the Prime Minister deserve some clear air or is Tony Abbott well within his rights to continue down that path -a path that some described as a deliberate campaign of destabilisation?

EDDIE ABETZ: I don't know who has described that as a path of destabilisation.

The simple fact is that every backbencher has the right to speak out on issues and make contributions.

The Prime Minister himself as a backbencher did exactly the same, so I'm sure that he won't be denying that to those that are now backbenchers.

Haven't said that, we in the Liberal-National Party are always interested in hearing alternate points of view and that is one of the great things about the Liberal Party, that is the individualism and individuals having input into policy.

That is something that should be celebrated and at the end of the day the party room then makes a determination as to what the policy ought be, but good healthy policy discussion should always be encouraged.

JOE O'BRIEN: Senator Abetz, thanks for joining us.

EDDIE ABETZ: Thanks a lot.