WA Liberal MP Ken Wyatt has complained of a culture of arrogance inside the Abbott Government ministry, striking a chord with coalition backbenchers who feel they are not being respected. At the final party room for the year, Mr Wyatt lectured colleagues about the importance of teamwork before detailing two incidents that upset him. Sources told _The West Australian _Mr Wyatt recalled a recent meeting at an unnamed ministers office. After one young staffer used his mobile phone to text messages throughout the meeting, Mr Wyatt told the staffer to never come back again. He also told of a ministerial adviser telling his wife that backbenchers dont matter in Canberra. Fellow Liberal MPs said Mr Wyatts contribution reflected wider concerns at the heavy centralisation of power in the prime ministers office and general disregard for the backbench. If they listened more to those of us at the coalface, theyd get some good oil, one said. One MP said the influence of the PMs office was insidious, affecting every corner of Government activity in contrast with Mr Abbotts ambition to run a Bob Hawke-style consensus Cabinet. Mr Abbott defended his office during his marathon press conference on Monday. Yesterday he ordered his MPs to use the holiday period to sell the Governments successes. It has not been an easy year but its been a year of achievement for our country and our government, he told Liberal and Nationals MPs. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten told Labor MPs it had been a year of broken promises. It is not, despite what Tony Abbott was saying, the barnacles. Its the actual ship, he said. Its simple, if the Government wanted to reboot, recast, press the delete button - no GP tax, no $100,000 university degrees, no petrol tax, no cuts to schools and hospitals, no cuts to pensions. If they listened more to those of us at the coalface, theyd get some good oil. Liberal backbencher
Posted on: Thu, 04 Dec 2014 07:27:09 +0000
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