JULIA Gillard will not “lie down and die” Tony Abbott has admitted to colleagues after throwing everything at the task only to have the latest opinion poll show his high-impact style was a turn-off for voters.
The reality-check for Liberals came as Ms Gillard averted a Caucus uprising over the new Enterprise Migration Agreement with mining magnate Gina Rinehart which will allow in to Australia 1700 foreign workers for the massive Roy Hill iron-ore project.
A new Caucus sub-committee – called the “sharing the benefits of the mining boom” sub-committee – will oversee the EMAs to ensure they do not undercut conditions.
After weeks of attention on the Craig Thomson controversy led by Mr Abbott, the regular Newspoll survey released yesterday stunned the political community, showing the Liberal leader’s personal support dropping to its lowest level since he got the job in 2009.
Labor MPs believe the result represents a negative reaction to Mr Abbott’s unrelenting pursuit of Mr Thomson which is designed to smash the Government’s fragile one-seat majority.
The Newspoll also showed a small recovery in Labor’s primary vote, helping to propel Ms Gillard ahead of Mr Abbott as preferred prime minister.
The apparently perverse result came after the Thomson furore reached fever-pitch and as Ms Gillard was attempting to hose down internal divisions over the EMA announcement.
While opinion polls show the Coalition remains well placed to win the election next year, the Newspoll is being seen as a wake-up call on the conservative side just as it has been grasped by desperate Labor MPs.
But Mr Abbott warned against the temptation of believing that Ms Gillard was unelectable.
“Julia Gillard won’t lay down and die – where there’s life, there’s fight,” he told his party room. “Our job won’t be over until the next election is won.”
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