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Aust'n PM Turnbull must unite gov't amid defection threat: former PM

Xinhua, December 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

It is Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's "duty" to unite the coalition government in the face of a defection threat from outspoken Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi, former Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Friday.

According to local media, Turnbull's predecessor and former PM Abbott penned a letter to the Liberal Party urging unity in the face of the breakaway threat from Bernardi, who has hinted he would defect from the coalition to form the far-right Australian Conservatives party.

Abbott described the threat as a "very serious matter" and said the Liberal-National coalition should be a place for all conservatives to work together in a constructive manner.

"The first duty of the leader is to keep the party together," News Corp reported Abbott as writing.

Abbott also took to social media to convey a similar message, posting: "To be strong and united, the Liberal Party cannot take the base for granted and must convincingly argue for its values and principles."

The government could also be at risk of losing its voting majority in the House of Representatives if the split occurs, as Queensland Nationals MP George Christensen has hinted that he might not "remain inside the tent" if Turnbull cannot unite the party and better represent the people who voted the coalition into power.

Other coalition MPs have also attempted to quell the tensions within the partyroom; Industry Minister Greg Hunt urged Bernardi to remain loyal to the "commitment" he made not only to the Liberal Party, but to the Australian public.

Meanwhile conservative Senator Eric Abetz backed Turnbull to unite the party before Parliament's first sitting day of 2017.

He described politics as a "frustrating game", but said the coalition was better off with conservatives and urged Bernardi and Christensen to "roll with the punches" as "disunity is death".

Bernardi formed the Australian Conservatives website back in July, as a means to "make the Liberal Party stronger", but talk has since moved to him forming an official breakaway party after a disgruntled Christensen posted his thoughts on social media on Thursday.

"With satisfaction with democracy at an all-time low in this country, I really do hope that 2017 heralds a new way of doing things for the Turnbull government and for politics in general," Christensen wrote on Facebook.

Bernardi has previously hinted that he would defect from the Liberal Party after Donald Trump's shock victory in the U.S election, saying that he has to "be a part of that change, perhaps even in some way be a catalyst for it".

Turnbull has not yet responded to the threat of the breakaway. Parliament is set to resume in February. Endit