Tony Abbott has delivered his last speech as prime minister, but not without sharply rebuking the “febrile” media for “acting as the assassin’s knife” by willingly publishing unsourced leaks.
About 50 journalists, photographers and camera operators gathered in the prime minister’s courtyard on Tuesday afternoon to hear Abbott make his last statement as Liberal party leader, after a dramatic late-night coup saw him lose the position to the man he took it from, Malcolm Turnbull.
The brief speech did not contain a resignation from parliament, nor an indication of Abbott’s future political ambitions.
The outgoing prime minister listed what he saw as his government’s achievements, including stopping asylum seeker boats, signing a number of trade deals and responding to the international terrorist threat.
He managed to achieve these benchmarks, and stay on message, “despite the white-anting”, Abbott said, referring to what he saw as efforts to undermine him.
“The nature of politics has changed in the past decade. We have more polls and more commentary than ever before. Mostly sour, bitter, character assassination. Poll-driven politics has produced a revolving door prime ministership which can’t be good for our country. And a febrile media culture has developed that rewards treachery.
“If there’s one piece of advice I can give to the media, it’s this: refuse to print self-serving claims that the person making them won’t put his or her name to. Refuse to connive with dishonour by acting as the assassin’s knife.”
Abbott often refers to himself as a former journalist after he worked in the industry for a few years from the mid-1980s to 1990.
The former assistant treasurer Arthur Sinodinos implied on Sky News that he found out about the loss of his portfolio through media leaks rather than a face-to-face conversation.
He agreed with Abbott that the practice of leaking to the media had to be pared back, without pointing the finger of blame at the prime minister’s office.
“There’s been a culture of leaking that has been fostered at various levels in this place,” Sinodinos said. “We have to discourage such a culture.”
Colleagues have accused the prime minister’s office of backgrounding journalists from sympathetic news organisations on cabinet decisions.
Abbott distanced himself from the former Labor government by saying he would make the leadership transition as easy as he could.
“There will be no wrecking, no undermining, and no sniping,” he said. “I have never leaked or backgrounded against anyone and I certainly won’t start now. Our country deserves better than that.”
Unlike the rolled Labor leaders who went before him – Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd – Abbott did not name his successor nor wish him well. Turnbull was sworn in shortly after Abbott’s statement and was not mentioned in Abbott’s address.
Turnbull paid tribute to Abbott as the first order of business during question time on Tuesday, despite the recently deposed leader being absent from the chamber.
“Mr Speaker, we owe a great debt to Tony Abbott. We thank him for his leadership, we thank him for his service,” the new prime minister said. “He is a great Australian and our country has been better, has been improved, better led under his time as PM.”
The opposition leader, Bill Shorten, also acknowledged Abbott’s legacy,
“He is a fierce proponent of his views, a formidable proponent of his views, a ruthless advocate for what he believes in. From his first victory in 2009 to become the leader of the Liberal party, right through to last night, he is a fighter, a formidable fighter,” Shorten said.
“I have exchanged harsh words with him in my time as opposition leader. I’ve disagreed with his politics and decisions on many occasions but I also wish to record that he had this frustrating ability on occasion, just when you were really frustrated with a particular decision he might have made, to do something unexpected and generous and personal,” Shorten said.
The leader of the Nationals, Warren Truss, said it had been a privilege working alongside Abbott for the five years they were both leaders of Coalition parties.
He admired Abbott’s sporty lifestyle, and quipped that the Australian federal police “would be relieved” that Turnbull is a slower runner and bike rider than his predecessor.
Abbott had acknowledged the difficulty of the leadership transition earlier.
“I have consistently said – in opposition and in government – that being the prime minister is not an end in itself: it is about the people you serve,” he said. “The great privilege that I have had is to see the wonder of this country like few others and I want to thank the Australian people for giving me the honour to serve.
“Yes, this is a tough day, but when you join the game you accept the rules.”
Abbott, who at times appeared to be keeping his emotions in check, concluded his statement by saying: “My love for this country is as strong as ever and may God bless this great commonwealth.”
