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Abbott ‘worse than Terminator’

Getty

Getty

There have been mixed reactions to former Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s decision to remain in politics, as he aims to extend his 22-year career in the game.

Speaking to ABC radio on Monday morning, Liberal ally and former cabinet minister, Senator Eric Abetz said Mr Abbott had plenty of “good years of service” left in him, following the ex-PM’s official announcement on Sunday night that he would recontest his federal seat of Warringah.

Mr Abetz was quick to dismiss that Mr Abbott was hatching a plan to destabilise the government like former Labor Prime Minister Kevin Rudd did.

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“Tony Abbott is absolutely no Kevin Rudd and therefore, I believe those sorts of analogies are not appropriate in any way, shape or form,” he told ABC radio.

“Kevin Rudd was always about one thing only: Kevin Rudd. Whereas Tony Abbott has always been about one thing, namely the Australian people.”

During his morning bike ride on Monday morning, reporters probed Mr Abbott about being discreet for months about his decision.

“Look, I wanted to keep my renomination as low key as possible so I don’t really have anything to say over and above the statement I put out last night,” he said.

But, not everyone welcomed the move.

A spokesman for Labor Leader Bill Shorten told Fairfax Media that the decision showed that “the Liberal Party was “totally obsessed with itself”.

“As hard as Malcolm Turnbull tries to get rid of Tony Abbott, he just can’t. He’s worse than the Terminator, he just keeps coming back,” he said.

On Sunday, Mr Abbott said in a statement that, if re-elected, he looked forward to working on state transport projects with NSW Premier Mike Baird.

“I said that I would spend some time talking to family, trusted colleagues and local Liberals about my future. I have been heartened by the support and encouragement I’ve received to continue to serve the country as a member of Parliament,” he said.

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