Tony Abbott 'determined to do better' after spill motion defeated – politics live

Things that make you go hmmmmm.

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The Liberal backbencher who cooked up the spill motion, Luke Simpkins, has just announced on Sky News that the government has dumped the GP copayment. That’s pretty big news, if true. A bit like the other backbencher who yesterday announced the competitive tender for the submarine purchase.

Someone from the PMO must have texted the Sky hosts on air. The GP copayment has NOT been dumped. Mischief? Silliness?

Speers to Simpkins:

Q: So the PM said he’d just consult more?

Simpkins:

Yes, yes, that’s true.

(End to chaos. Adults back in charge. Moving forward.)

The broadcast from the bunker is underway now. Here it is, Tony Abbott, hunkered down in his office, broadcasting live.

I know he’s doing this because the TV networks would have been howling for updated vision. But this is the true definition of shark-jumping really. As is the inference here that the party room doesn’t matter again. This would be the party room who just took out a chunk of his flesh.

Tony Abbott:

The Liberal party has dealt with the spill motion and now this matter is behind us. We are absolutely determined to work for you the people who elected us. We want to end the disunity and the uncertainty which destroyed two Labor governments and give you the good government that you deserve. We think that when you elect a government, when you elect a prime minister, you deserve to keep that government and that prime minister until you have a chance to change your mind.

So the focus now is once more on jobs, families, a stronger economy and a secure nation. We do face many challenges. At heart, we are a highly successful country, justifiably proud of what we’ve achieved. In essence, we are a strong economy with so much creativity and dynamism and the challenge for government is to work with you, not against you. I love this country. I will do my best to help our country to succeed.

Ah, no. The prime minister’s statement to the house is on the Martin Place siege. There is a broadcast from the bunker, then a press conference. On current indications. All things liable to change without notice.

Extraodinary really. Word emerged a few minutes ago that Tony Abbott would make a statement to the media from his office. One television camera. No questions.

Broadcast from the bunker. Are they kidding?

This has now become a statement to parliament, apparently.

Father of the House, Phillip Ruddock.

My colleague Lenore Taylor has just given me a quick read out on Abbott’s message to the party room. The pep talk went like this:

• The prime minister pleaded for colleagues to stop backgrounding the media. Abbott said he’d learned from past missteps. He was changing. There would be full cabinet meetings.
• He acknowledged the government was fighting on too many fronts. He said the party would be consulted on future policy shifts. He said there would be no revenge against people who had spoken out over the past few weeks.

Julie Bishop told her colleagues: don’t let things fester. She said her door was always open.

There are things Tony Abbott can do right now to improve the situation for himself. He can be himself, for a start. He could move to strengthen the ministry.

But everything he does now is from a position of weakness. He’s lost the opportunity to take the initiative.

From my colleague, Lenore Taylor.

Thirty-nine of his colleagues have effectively voted no confidence in Tony Abbott’s leadership. He resorted to making apparent promises about major defence acquisitions to win votes in a party room ballot. His rallying call was not the confident cry, “I’m the man to lead us to glory at the next election”, but just the plaintive, “Please could you give me a bit more time?”

Can Abbott’s win in the party room on Monday really be seen as a decisive victory, an endorsement, an end to the spectacle of a Liberal leader coming apart not due to the bastardry of colleagues but due to his own mismanagement of his party and his policy agenda?

He lost 39 votes when no one was standing against him.

Turnbull walked by the waiting pack with one comment.

Great to see you all.