Treasurer Joe Hockey has dismissed the latest opinion poll showing the coalition would take a beating at an election.
The Newspoll, published in The Australian on Tuesday, also shows Labor has an eight point two-party preferred lead - 54-46 per cent - over the coalition.
For the first time in five months Labor has a higher primary vote than the government.
Mr Hockey says it's nothing he hasn't seen before and believes the government can bounce back.
"I saw this in 2004, I saw it in 1998," he told the Nine Network.
"I have seen it previously, where we have gone on to win an election, even weeks and months just after those sort of polls.
Mr Hockey cited jobs growth, economic growth and national security as the issues the government needed to focus on to win back voters.
Mr Shorten has overtaken Mr Abbott as preferred prime minister for the first time since mid-April.
Mr Abbott's standing is down three points to 35 per cent, while Mr Shorten gained two points to be on 40 per cent.
The Labor leader enjoyed a surge in support as satisfaction with his performance jumped five points to a three-month high of 34 per cent.
Core support for the coalition fell one point to 38 per cent, Labor's primary vote was unchanged at 39 per cent while the Greens were steady at 13 per cent.
Mr Shorten said the latest poll confirmed that whatever the government did went wrong.
"I don't think Australians need an opinion poll to tell them that this government is one of the most incompetent governments in the history of federation," he told reporters in Brisbane.
"Everything they touch turns bad."
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