Tony Abbott, 57, made an impression as a rigorous and combative premier during his time in power from September 2013 to September 2015.
True to form, after being ousted by Malcolm Turnbull in last year’s internal Liberal party ballot he lashed out at what he saw as “sour, bitter character assassination” in the media, and Australia’s “revolving-door prime ministership”.
Over a 21-year political career, the Jesuit-educated marathon runner gained a reputation as a right-wing, pro-business monarchist.
“I’m not saying that our culture, our traditions are perfect, but we have to respect them and my idea is to build on the strength of our society,” he said during his successful 2013 election campaign.
After university in Sydney, Abbott won a Rhodes scholarship to study politics and law at Oxford University in England.
He became a media adviser with the Liberal party in opposition before winning a seat in a 1994 by-election in Warringah, north Sydney – the same seat he is set to contest in the next elections.
When Labor took over again in 2007, Abbott held his seat. He took advantage of divisions caused by then leader Turnbull’s support for Labor’s climate policy, sparking a leadership contest he won by one vote.
After winning power in the 2013 general election, he cut spending and some taxes, and restarted the practice of giving knighthoods by awarding one to Queen Elizabeth’s husband, Prince Philip. The policy has since been scrapped.
Taxes on mining and carbon were duly axed, although Abbott committed to the previous administration’s target of a 5% reduction on 2000 emissions by 2020.
His high-profile policy of stopping migrant boats from reaching Australia dramatically slowed arrivals. He announced that even successful asylum seekers would not be allowed into Australia but resettled elsewhere, a policy continued under Turnbull.
His ouster in September came as the Liberals’ popularity slumped, with many blaming him for Australia’s suffering during the global economic slowdown, paving the way for the arrival of trained lawyer and investment banker Turnbull.
Abbott has continued to make headlines in the last four months however, including for a speech in London in October encouraging Europe to adopt Australia-style immigration policies; and for picking up a fridge bought by his wife on second-hand goods website Gumtree in December.
With another election in his sights, he is not going to disappear from the political scene anytime soon.