Malcolm Turnbull has been sworn in as the 29th Prime Minister of Australia after a leadership challenge saw the ouster of Tony Abbott.
Mr Turnbull’s Liberal Party colleagues voted 54-44 to replace Mr Abbott during a surprise ballot on Monday.
He becomes the nation’s fourth leader in a little over two years, but despite division in his party, Mr Turnbull says he will lead a “very strong government”.
“There’s been a change of prime minister, but we are a very, very strong government, a very strong country with a great potential and we will realise that potential working very hard together,” he said.
“This is a turn of events I did not expect, I have to tell you, but it’s one that I’m privileged to undertake and one that I’m certainly up to.”
Shortly before Mr Turnbull was sworn in, Mr Abbott spoke for the first time since his sudden ouster.
He warned that the persistent volatility in Australia’s government could hurt the nation’s standing on the global stage.
“Australia has a role to play in the struggles of the wider world: the cauldron of the Middle East and security in the South China Sea and elsewhere,” he said.
“I fear that none of this will be helped if the leadership instability that’s plagued other countries continues to taint us.”
Source: Sky News
