The man who once claimed responsibility for Julie Bishop’s political career has unleashed on the former Foreign Minister, accusing her of being “precious” and never helping the promotion of other women into politics.

In a ferocious rebuke of Ms Bishop, former WA Liberal senator Noel Crichton-Browne accused Ms Bishop of wanting to “destroy the careers of her colleagues” and bring down Prime Minister Scott Morrison, while also accusing her of helping to tear down former leader Tony Abbott.

“While Julie Bishop has been blessed with 20 years in parliament, there are relatively new members and ministers whose careers are just beginning, and which may well be destroyed by Bishop who is determined to bring down Morrison’s prime ministership,” he says.

He also takes aim at the former deputy leader for criticising the number of women in Liberal Party ranks, saying her views are a “recent epiphany”.

“In her 20 years she played no part in the endorsement of any WA Liberal women, in either the State or Federal Parliament,” he said.

While acknowledging that Ms Bishop is “hurt, angry…and disappointed” that she only received 11 votes in last year’s leadership spill, Mr Crichton-Browne said that was largely her own fault.

“Bishop could at any time have moved to a domestic portfolio and given her colleagues an opportunity to judge whether she was capable of being prime minister,” he said.

He said that given politics was about self interest, her parliamentary colleagues would have voted for her if they thought she was the best option to be leader.

“Those whose seats are in peril will vote for the devil if it means survival, while those in safe seats will vote for a leader whom they judge will make the best prime minister,” he said.

“In the eyes of her colleagues Bishop did not satisfy either criterion.”

“Having, as his deputy, been secretly party to the dumping of prime minister Tony Abbott just two years after his landslide election win, some may find it a little precious that Bishop should now rage against those who she claims so grievously deceived her.”

The rebuke comes after Ms Bishop used an interview last weekend to slam her parliamentary colleagues for not supporting her in the leadership spill, saying they had misled her about their support.

Mr Crichton-Browne was instrumental to Ms Bishop’s elevation to Parliament, and is credited with her gaining preselection for the seat or Curtin before she was elected to Parliament in 1998.