Turnbull only just ahead of Bill Shorten as preferred prime minister, having dropped 12 points in a monthIf Malcolm Turnbull hits 30 Newspolls trailing Labor, he will have to explain why he shouldn’t go as prime minister, Tony Abbott has warned. Turnbull is only narrowly clinging to his preferred prime minister status following upheavals that continue to disrupt his government, the latest Newspoll reveals. Tasmanian election: how the Greens helped dash Labor's hopes of victory Read moreWhen Turnbull challenged Abbott for the prime ministership in late 2015, he cited 30 consecutive Newspoll losses as a reason why Abbott had to go. But Abbott has jumped on this week’s Newspoll, saying Turnbull will have to explain why his 30-consecutive-poll metric shouldn’t apply to him. “I never made the polls the be-all and the end-all, I never turned the poll into the ultimate test of leadership,” Abbott told 2GB radio on Monday.

Source: The Guardian March 04, 2018 21:33 UTC