Liberal Party of Australia leadership spill, 2009
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A leadership spill of the federal parliamentary leader of the Liberal Party of Australia was held on 1 December 2009. The incumbent, Malcolm Turnbull, was defeated by Tony Abbott in a three-way vote of Liberal Party Members of Parliament (MPs). Joe Hockey also stood as a candidate. Abbott thus became the Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Australia.
The spill was the culmination of a dispute within the Liberal Party over its response to the Rudd Government's proposed emissions trading scheme (ETS). Turnbull supported the introduction of an ETS and sought to negotiate amendments to government's proposed legislation. Abbott came to represent many Liberal members of Parliament who were climate change sceptics or otherwise opposed the ETS. After Turnbull survived a spill motion (a motion to declare the leadership vacant) against his leadership in late November 2009, Abbott declared his candidacy and a subsequent spill was moved on 1 December. Hockey—a moderate who had been a supporter of Turnbull's position on the ETS—also stood. While Hockey had been expected to win, he was knocked out in the first round of voting. Abbott subsequently defeated Turnbull in the second round, 42–41.
Malcolm Turnbull was elected to the House of Representatives in the 2004 federal election. In January 2007 he was appointed Minister for the Environment and Water Resources by Prime Minister John Howard. After the Australian Labor Party defeated the Howard government in the 2007 election, Turnbull, Brendan Nelson and Tony Abbott announced they would each contest the Liberal Party leadership. Nelson defeated Turnbull in a ballot after Abbott withdrew his candidacy. Turnbull became the Shadow Treasurer on Nelson's frontbench.
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