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Aust'n PM, predecessor disagree over "who the PM should be": Aussie MP

Xinhua, October 21, 2016 Adjust font size:

A rift between Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his predecessor Tony Abbott came to a head on Friday, with colleagues acknowledging they still disagree over who should lead the country.

Cabinet Minister and Leader of the House Christopher Pyne told local media that Turnbull and Abbott still disagree about "who the Prime Minister should be", more than a year after Turnbull successfully staged a leadership coup to oust Abbott from the position.

Following further debate about a possible relaxation of Australia's gun laws this week, the rift between the two leaders re-emerged, but Pyne said it was only natural they disagree on some major issues.

"They are very old friends. Of course they have a difference of opinion about who the Prime Minister should be. That's been played out in public, we know that, and Malcolm Turnbull is the Prime Minister," Pyne told the Nine Network on Friday.

Meanwhile colleague and Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg described the public spat as a "great big distraction" for the coalition, in a time when it was trying to pass the controversial building and construction watchdog bill through Parliament.

"There was a leadership change. You can understand the differences they may have on particular issues," Frydnberg told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Crossbench Senator David Leyonhjelm, who is one of the major players the government is keen to secure for support on the bill, has said he would vote in favor of a building watchdog but only if the government lifted a ban on the controversial seven-round Adler shotgun.

In Parliament on Thursday afternoon, Turnbull directly contradicted the former PM Abbott's claim there was not a deal already made between Leyonhjelm and the coalition before he was ousted from the top job.

Turnbull said there was "full knowledge" about open discussions between the crossbench Senator and the government about lifting the controversial ban. Endit