WHAT TONY ABBOTT TOLD 2GB RADIO'S RAY HADLEY:
ON HIS MENTAL STATE:
"Yes I am (OK) and thank you for your concern. Politics was a pretty brutal business. It's a game of snakes and ladders and yes I've hit a snake."
ON LOYALTY:
"You've got to rely on the people close to you."
"I've never believed in watching my own own back. Any leader who is watching his back is not focusing on the main job and if you are watching your back almost by definition you're going backwards."
ON WHETHER SCOTT MORRISON WARNED HIM OF LEADERSHIP TENSION:
"There was a conversation as I understand it between Scott and (chief of staff) Peta Credlin. He's obviously put one construction on the conversation, my office put a different construction on the conversation."
"I'm just not going to get into who might have said what, who should have said what, to whom and when."
ON REVOLVING DOOR PRIME MINISTERSHIPS:
"My hope is that what happened a fortnight ago finishes all of this stuff, that we get right away from this concept of changing the leader like you might change your clothes to suit the fashion, because our country is better than that."
ON HIS MESSAGE TO COLLEAGUES:
"It's very important that Liberal members of parliament stick with the leader and sure there'll be difficult times, sure there'll be up and downs, but people of character and steadiness don't panic at the polls."
ON FORMER TREASURER JOE HOCKEY:
"Joe and I were absolute blood brothers when it comes to economic policy and the idea that I could have just casually sacrificed Joe to save myself is dead wrong."
ON HIS HIS CHIEF OF STAFF PETA CREDLIN:
"No-one worked longer and harder for our success in opposition and in government than she did. No-one's perfect. I suppose occasionally she may have spoken brusquely to one or two people. She did an absolutely marvellous job."
ON WHAT'S NEXT:
"I'm too young to retire. I've still got something to contribute to public life. There's not going to be a by-election in Warringah any time soon, but I'm not going to make any final decisions this side of Christmas."
ON HIS LEGACY:
"My government did leave a very, very strong foundation. A lot of terrific things were done in two years and I hope that the new government and the new prime minister are able to build on that strong foundation."
"I think was a pretty fierce opposition leader."
"If you judge things by the polls, I've never been very popular. You can be not especially popular in these personal approval or disapproval ratings and at the same time lead a very effective political operation, lead a very effective opposition or indeed, a very effective government."
