Malcolm Turnbull has lashed out at the ‘bullies’ and dark forces that tore down his leadership, while requiring his challenger Peter Dutton to prove he is fit to sit in Parliament before he is willing to step down.
A calm but defiant Prime Minister said he would not contest a ballot for the leadership at midday tomorrow if the majority of the party room put their names to a petition for the second spill in a week.
Mr Turnbull also wanted to see advice from the solicitor-general that Peter Dutton was eligible to stay in Parliament amid concerns over his constitutional status.
‘I cannot underline too much how important it is that anyone who seeks to be prime minister of Australia is eligible to be a member of parliament,’ he said in Canberra on Thursday.
If the petition is carried as expected, Mr Turnbull will not only step aside as Prime Minister but quit Parliament entirely, prompting a crucial by-election in his Sydney seat of Wentworth.
Malcolm Turnbull will quit as Prime Minister if a partyroom meeting on Friday passes a spill motion on his leadership
Appearing calm and relaxed, Mr Turnbull said Liberal MPs first need to see the advice from the solicitor-general on the eligibility of challenger Peter Dutton to sit in the parliament
Mr Turnbull will retire from parliament if the spill motion goes ahead, but declined to endorse a successor or refer to Scott Morrison’s bid for the leadership (pictured are Mr Turnbull and Mr Morrison)
The House of Representatives has been adjourned by the government amid the battle over the Liberal leadership, and will return on September 10
Mr Turnbull acknowledged politics was a tough business but slammed right-wing bullies within and outside Parliament who undermined his leadership.
‘I think what we’re witnessing, what we have witnessed at the moment is a very deliberate effort to pull the Liberal Party further to the right. And that’s been stated by the number of people who have been involved in this,’ he said.
The comment has been widely interpreted as an attack on former prime minister Tony Abbott and his acolytes, as well as elements of the Murdoch-controlled Newscorp press.
‘Australians will be rightly appalled by what they’re witnessing in their nation’s parliament today and in the course of this week,’ Mr Turnbull said in Canberra on Thursday.
The government’s legal advice is expected to be ready early Friday.
Mr Turnbull said the public would be ‘crying out for an election’ once the dust settled.
He said a ‘form of madness’ had taken over those agitating for a leadership change.
Mr Turnbull will retire from parliament if the spill motion goes ahead, but declined to endorse a successor amid reports Treasurer Scott Morrison will also seek the leadership in the event of a ballot.
The Prime Minister blamed ‘bullies’ and an ‘insurgency’ for the crisis engulfing the government, and slammed his former Home Affairs Minister.
‘What began as a minority has by a process of intimidation, you know, persuaded people that the only way to stop the insurgency is to give into it,’ he said.
The resignation of three senior ministers effectively sounds the death knell for Mr Turnbull’s leadership after days of chaos in Canberra
‘Now, I do not believe in that. I have never done that. I have never given into bullies but you can imagine the pressure it’s put people under.’
Mr Turnbull’s announcement came after he was deserted by his most loyal lieutenants, who tendered their resignations and urged him to step aside for the good of the country.
Scott Morrison is preparing to run in a leadership ballot against Mr Dutton, with Greg Hunt replacing him as treasurer. The former Health Minister has also been flagged as a possible deputy leader under Mr Dutton.
A member of Mr Morrison’s camp claimed the Prime Minister intends to step aside to allow a two-way contest, but Mr Turnbull is yet to resign.
Mr Morrison has emerged as a potential consensus candidate, a former immigration minister like Mr Dutton who could appeal to both moderate and conservative Liberal MPs alike.
Scott Morrison (pictured, right) will run against Mr Dutton, with Greg Hunt replacing him as treasurer
Mr Dutton’s supporters believe the Treasurer has been planning his own shot at the leadership since Monday, when he was tipped off about growing support for the former Home Affairs Minister.
In order to put himself in prime position for the top job, Mr Morrison then urged the Prime Minister to call Tuesday’s spill, a senior Liberal MP told The Australian.
The House of Representatives has been adjourned by the government amid the battle over the Liberal leadership, and will return on September 10.
The government won the vote to adjourn Parliament early by 70 votes to 68, meaning there will be no Question Time this afternoon. The Senate will not be adjourned.
In a devastating blow to Mr Turnbull, senior ministers Mathias Cormann, Michaelia Cash and Mitch Fifield, who voted for the prime minister in the first spill on Tuesday, announced they had withdrawn their backing.
The resignations of Health Minister Greg Hunt, Citizenship Minister Alan Tudge and Cyber Security Minister Angus Taylor, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Steven Ciobo and Justice Minister Michael Keenan followed within hours.
The flurry of Cabinet departures effectively sounds the death knell for Mr Turnbull’s leadership after days of chaos in Canberra.
A total of 13 Cabinet ministers have now tendered their resignations and are calling on the Prime Minister to hold a leadership ballot in the interests of an orderly transition.
‘It’s with great sadness and a heavy heart that we went to see the prime minister yesterday afternoon to advise him that in our judgment he no longer enjoyed the support of the majority of members in the Liberal Party party room,’ Mr Cormann told reporters at Parliament House.
‘And that it was in the best interests of the Liberal Party to help manage an orderly transition to a new leader.’
Peter Dutton demanded a new leadership spill on Thursday morning after telling Mr Turnbull he no longer had majority support.
A new ballot is likely to be held today at which point a new leader of the Liberal Party and therefore Prime Minister will be elected.
Key Cabinet ministers Mathias Cormann (pictured, right), Mitch Fifield and Michaelia Cash (pictured, left) tendered their resignations and called on the Prime Minister to hold a leadership ballot
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is desperately clinging to power despite his most loyal lieutenants tendering their resignations
‘I became aware yesterday that it was very clear that the Prime Minister no longer, in my opinion, had the confidence of the party room,’ Ms Cash said.
Mr Cormann said the Prime Minister had declined his resignation from the ministry on Wednesday.
‘We are very conscious of the seriousness of the decision that we’ve made,’ he said.
‘In my view it would be in the interests of the Liberal Party and in the interests of the country for a partyroom meeting to be called swiftly for the issue of the leadership of the Liberal Party to be resolved.’
The Finance Minister said it was a difficult thing for him to do and praised Mr Turnbull.
‘I believe that Malcolm Turnbull has been and is a great prime minister. I believe that he will go down in history as having secured amazing achievements for Australia,’ he said.
Minister for Jobs Michaelia Cash (pictured, left) Finance Minister Mathias Cormann (pictured, centre) and Minister for Communications Mitch Fifield (pictured, right) depart a press conference after announcing their support for former Minister for Home Affairs Peter Dutton
Peter Dutton released the legal advice which he says makes clear he is eligible to sit in parliament
Mr Dutton lost a challenge 48 votes to 35 on Tuesday, but now believes he has the numbers required to win a second spill.
‘A few minutes ago I spoke with Malcolm Turnbull to advise him I believed the majority of the party room no longer supported his leadership,’ Mr Dutton tweeted on Thursday.
‘Accordingly, I asked him to convene a party room meeting at which I would challenge for the leadership of the Parliamentary Liberal Party.’
The ex-Home Affairs Minister then recapped his statement while addressing reporters at Parliament House on Thursday morning.
Mr Turnbull has so far declined the request to hold the meeting.
The ex-Home Affairs Minister confirmed he had demanded a second spill while addressing reporters at Parliament House on Thursday morning
‘A few minutes ago I spoke with Malcolm Turnbull to advise him I believed the majority of the party room no longer supported his leadership,’ Mr Dutton tweeted on Thursday
Mr Dutton also released legal advice which he said makes clear he is eligible to sit in parliament after questions were raised over his family’s business interests in two childcare centres.
Questions have been raised if Mr Dutton could be in breach of section 44 of the constitution, which bans from parliament anyone who has ‘any direct or indirect pecuniary interest with the public service of the Commonwealth’.
Mr Dutton’s confirmation of a second leadership challenge follows the formal resignations of two more federal government ministers in support of his bid.
Assistant ministers Michael Sukkar and Zed Seselja refused the Prime Minister’s offer to stay in their positions, throwing their weight behind Mr Dutton ahead of a second leadership challenge.
The pair have followed Mr Dutton, Concetta Fierravanti-Wells and James McGrath from the front bench.
!['Accordingly, I asked him [Mr Turnbull - pictured] to convene a party room meeting at which I would challenge for the leadership of the Parliamentary Liberal Party,' Mr Dutton said](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/08/22/23/4F4B3B7700000578-6088459-A_senior_government_figure_accused_Mr_Dutton_s_supporters_of_spr-a-17_1534975470836.jpg)
‘Accordingly, I asked him [Mr Turnbull – pictured] to convene a party room meeting at which I would challenge for the leadership of the Parliamentary Liberal Party,’ Mr Dutton said
Peter Dutton (pictured) said on Thursday he believed Mr Turnbull had lost majority support
Mr Dutton also released legal advice which he said makes clear he is eligible to sit in parliament
Wednesday evening was marked by planted rumours of betrayal, an ominous letter circling among MPs and accusations of aggressive tactics.
Female MPs reportedly felt intimidated by members of Mr Dutton’s camp pressuring them to sign a letter forcing a partyroom meeting.
‘They’ve been running the halls and bursting into offices and attempting to intimidate people to sign their letter of support,’ a senior Turnbull government figure told The Daily Telegraph.
The letter read: ‘Dear Prime Minister, we, the undersigned, request that you call a meeting of the Joint House Parliamentary Liberal Party, as soon as practicable, for the purpose of determining the leadership of the Party.’
The same government figure accused Mr Dutton’s supporters of spreading false rumours about resignations of key backers of Mr Turnbull.
Peter Dutton is demanding a new leadership spill after telling the Prime Minister he has majority support
During the evening Mr Turnbull met with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop (pictured), Treasurer Scott Morrison and Mr Cormann for crisis talks
‘We’ve got to see this off. They are just hell bent on blowing the joint up and we can’t bow to that. We have to fight it, he said.
‘We’re trying to get a sensible outcome so that MPs do not make decisions in a panic.’
During the evening Mr Turnbull met with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Treasurer Scott Morrison and Mr Cormann for crisis talks.
Christopher Pyne, Craig Laundy, Christian Porter and government whip Nola Merino were also in attendance.
The moderate Liberal Party MPs discussed possible next steps should Mr Turnbull lose in a spill or decide to step down.
The rumours of Mr Cormann’s defection reportedly left the Finance Minister (pictured, left) furious
Finance Minister Mathias Cormann and Jobs Minister Michaelia Cash were among those rumoured to have resigned and withdrawn support from Malcolm Turnbull (Michaelia Cash pictured)
Either of those scenarios could see one or both of Ms Bishop and Mr Morrison put their hands up for the leadership, although if both ran they would likely split the moderate and centre-right vote, with conservatives backing Mr Dutton.
Both Ms Bishop and Mr Morrison confirmed they would not stand challenge Mr Turnbull themselves.
Mr Morrison has emerged as a contender who could unite the warring factions and steal conservative votes away from Mr Dutton, unlike Ms Bishop who is seen as too moderate by those on the right.
The Treasurer backed Tony Abbott during the 2015 leadership spill, and voted against same-sex marriage.
Mr Turnbull narrowly survived a leadership ballot from Peter Dutton in an extraordinary Liberal party room vote on Tuesday, prevailing 48 votes to 35.
Mr Dutton’s team reportedly said they were confident they had the numbers to succeed if a vote were to go ahead on Wednesday night, but no spill was called.
His eligibility for the top job has been called into question, however, having been referred to the Solicitor-General over financial interest in two childcare centres that were the recipients of Commonwealth government subsidies.
Ten ministers offered their resignations to Mr Turnbull following Tuesday’s leadership spill, the number later expanding to 13.
Only the resignations of Mr Dutton and International Development Minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells were accepted by Mr Turnbull.
Mr Dutton’s (pictured) eligibility for the top job has been called into question however, having been referred to the Solicitor-General over financial interest in two childcare centres