Australia PM Abbott faces leadership test within his party

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott is to face a leadership test next week within the ruling Liberal Party, which he heads, after one legislator from the party announced on Friday he would schedule a confidence vote.

The Liberal Party’s Luke Simpkins communicated to his colleagues that he would present a proposal on Tuesday to replace Abbott as the leader of the conservative group, which would imply his removal as head of the country’s government.

Simpkins said in an email that people from his electorate had questioned the leadership of the government, and Abbott’s decision to bestow the title of Knight of the Order of Australia on Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth II, was “the final proof of a disconnection with the people.”

“I think that we must bring this to a head and test the support of the leadership in the party room,” on Feb. 10, he wrote.

In recent days, the parliament in Canberra has been awash with rumors regarding the replacement of Abbott with Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull being considered by many as a probable substitute.

Chief government whip Philip Ruddock confirmed having received the notification and said that Abbott had indicated that the motion would be on the table during the party meeting on Tuesday, according to the ABC television channel.

After learning about the developments, Abbott said at a press conference that he would join forces with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop “in defeating this motion to vote in favor of the stability and the team that the people voted for at the election.”

“We are not the Labor party, we are not going to repeat the chaos and the instability of the Labor years,” Abbott said, indicating that his government had a strong plan.

In 2010, thenprime minister Kevin Rudd, of the Labor Party, lost his position as head of the party and the government to Julia Gillard during a similar confidence vote.

The Liberal Party’s defeat last week in the elections in Queensland and the controversial decision to grant the knighthood to Prince Philip has contributed to a fall in support for Abbott, with the latest surveys indicating that about 67 percent of the people were against him.