Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull recalls predecessor Tony Abbott being too drunk to attend parliament
Abbott remains a government lawmaker and retains strong support from his party’s hard-right faction
Australia’s prime minister confirmed on Friday that his predecessor and intra-party rival Tony Abbott had once been too drunk to vote in Parliament, an incident that’s been a poorly kept secret in political circles for eight years.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told Melbourne Radio 3AW on Friday that he was opposition leader in 2009 when Abbott was incapable of voting against government legislation to massively increase economic stimulus spending.
Abbott replaced Turnbull as leader of the conservative Liberal Party late in 2009 and became prime minister before Turnbull ousted Abbott in a party ballot in 2015.
“I was disappointed, but you’ve got to move on with these things,” Turnbull told Melbourne Radio 3AW of Abbott’s inebriation. “I can’t remember anyone else missing a vote because they were too drunk to get into the chamber.”
Turnbull told the truth over the episode after media reported that Abbott had finally confessed in a television interview that will be screened on September 5.
Abbott said he had gone to sleep on his office couch after he’d been drinking wine with two party colleagues.