Former PM Tony Abbott refuses to say if he has forgiven Malcolm Turnbull.

By political reporter Stephanie Anderson.

Dumped prime minister Tony Abbott has refused to say whether he has forgiven Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull as he urges party members to stay on and “fight”.

Speaking to 3AW’s Neil Mitchell, Mr Abbott said he would exercise “silence” when asked if he had forgiven Mr Turnbull.

“There’s obviously been a lot of dirty water under the bridge,” he said.

“I guess in time, all things are more readily understood, more readily accommodated and seen in proper perspective.

“Malcolm didn’t stay in the parliament to be someone else’s minister.”

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Mr Abbott said he had received some “interesting texts” from colleagues in the wake of the leadership change, including some from Mr Turnbull a week ago.

He said he did not want to be a “thorn in the side” of the new government, but repeated his claim that he could have led the party to victory in the next election.

“Obviously the polls were difficult, but I am absolutely confident that we would have won the election under my prime ministership,” he said.

“I’m confident that we will be very competitive at the election under Malcolm Turnbull’s leadership.”

Mr Abbott also took aim at the media, partly attributing his loss of leadership to anonymous reports.

"The thing that has most disappointed me about the media recently is the readiness of people to report as fact self-serving claims made by individuals on an anonymous basis," he said.

"A lot of people in the media have got to ask themselves the question: why did they allow themselves to be the assassin's knife?"

Mr Abbott urged Liberal party members to rally behind the new leadership, saying party members have "got to make the most of situations, even very difficult ones".

"Stay in, fight for the things you believe in," he said.

"I can understand why a lot of people feel bruised ... The best way to make the most of the situation we find ourselves in is to continue to support good causes, good people and coalition government."

Mr Abbott also ruled out supporting a third conservative party, saying it's the "last thing" the country needs.

His comments follow reports that hundreds of members of the Liberal party have quit the party in the wake of last month's leadership change.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told media on Thursday that he had received positive feedback on the leadership change, stating that members were "very happy with the transition".

"The Liberal party is a big tent, broad church, a big grassroots organisation and lots of people join," he said.

"People come and go in political parties. Ultimately, our strength is in our grassroots and our membership."

Dumped federal minister Eric Abetz has reported "hundreds of resignations from the Liberal Party" following the leadership spill two weeks ago.

The former employment minister and leader of the house in the Senate — who lost both roles under the new Prime Minister — emailed supporters on Wednesday, saying members "owed allegiance" to party beliefs despite the change in leadership.

"It is disappointing to hear of a spate of resignations from the Liberal Party and of threats not to renew memberships over the recent federal leadership change in the Liberal Party," he said.

"The Liberal Party has always been bigger than the person who holds the position of federal leader of the parliamentary party from time to time."

A spokesman for Senator Abetz later said the figure in the email referred to the number of resignations from the party nationwide, not just Tasmania.

This post originally appeared on the ABC and was republished here with full permission. 

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