ROLLING COVERAGE: Malcolm Turnbull wins the leadership challenge

We have a new Liberal leader.

10.45pm. Julie Bishop gives a press conference, saying “it’s a great honour” to be elected as Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party again.

She confirms she will continue as Foreign Minister.

10.40pm. Malcolm Turnbull gives a press conference speaking about the change in leadership.

He begins by acknowledging the”great debt” the party owes to Tony Abbott, then outlines his plan for a government with “economic vision” and “a leadership that explains the great challenges and opportunities that we face.”

He says he aims to lead “a thoroughly liberal government committed to freedom,” and an Australia that “agile, that is innovative, that is creative”.

“The disruption that we see driven by technology… is our friend if we are agile and smart enough to take advantage of it,” he says.

9.52pm. Julie Bishop wins the deputy leadership contest. She got 70 votes to Kevin Andrew’s 30.

9.50pm. Malcolm Turnbull wins the challenge. 54 votes to 44 votes.

9.18pm The meeting is underway.

9.15pm The Prime Minister arrives flanked by 30 members.

9.12pm. Malcolm Turnbull arrives with a small group.

9.10pm Deputy leader Julie Bishop arrives at the party room alone.

9.07pm. Liberal party members are making their way to the party room for the ballot. Around 100 members are expected.

9.05pm.   “Tony Abbott has wilfully, recklessly and arrogantly burned any capital he had with women since the day he was elected.” Mia Freedman reflects on Tony Abbott’s record and says it’s time for him to go.

9.00pm Kate Carnell, the CEO of the ACCI, says whatever the result tonight it needs to be clear. Business has had enough of uncertainty.

8.45pm. The Liberal candidate for the seat of Canning in WA, Andrew Hastie addresses the media and urges parliamentarians to “consider their vote carefully”.

8.40pm Government whip confirms meeting is set for 9.15pm.

8.35pm The timing of the party room meeting keeps shifting. Was meant to be 8pm, then 9pm but there are reports it will be later.

7.45pm James Massola gets word from a Turnbull supporter.

7.35pm. Arthur Sinodinos spoke to Leigh Sales on ABC’s 7.30.  

What I’ve said is, and we have to be truthful about this, we did break promises and we lost that trust and we need a change of leader to begin the process of regaining the trust of the Australian people.

7.30pm Kevin Andrews declares his support for Tony Abbott who he says is the Liberal party’s chance at winning the next election.

7.20pm. The Reverend Fred Nile weighed in declaring his support for Tony Abbott.

7.10pm Deputy PM Warren Truss holds a short press conference saying he supports Tony Abbott.

7pm. Reports emerge that the party room will meet at 8pm. Soon after that we’ll know if Australia will get its 5th Prime Minister in eight years.

6.50pm. Sky News reports that Scott Morrison will support Tony Abbott. Peter Dutton also confirms he supports Tony Abbott and he won’t run as deputy.

6.30pm The embattled treasurer Joe Jockey addressed the media and slammed Malcolm Turnbull’s disloyalty. There had been reports that Hockey may have stepped down in a bid to bolster Tony Abbott’s votes: these reports were quickly shown to be false. Like Abbott, Hockey dug his heels in and won’t be going anywhere without a fight.

6.15pm the Prime Minister addressed the media. The thrust of his short statement was that the Liberal party is not the Labor party. He was adamant that his party could not and would not, replicate “Labor’s revolving door of PMs”. He said he can be trusted to deliver a stronger economy and a safe community, before confirming the party room would meet tonight.

“The Prime Ministership of this country is not a prize or a plaything to be demanded,” the Prime Minister said.

He also added that he was dismayed by the destabilising within his party and expects to win the party room vote.

6pm. On Radio National Arthur Sinodinos didn’t pause before declaring his support for Malcolm Turnbull. He explained that in February, after the unsuccessful leadership spill, the backbenchers were happy to accept Tony Abbott’s undertaking that he would change. But, Sinodinos said, since the winter break it has been increasingly clear little had changed. “The bottom line is we cannot have any more captain picks. We need a more consultative approach,” he told Patricia Karvalas. “Many people aren’t listening to us. We need to regain the public’s trust.”

5.55pm The Opposition Leader Bill Shorten held a short press conference and said that Australia does not need another arrogant, out of touch leader.  In a press conference, that was quickly torn apart on social media, Shorten argued that a change in leadership would be tantamount to nothing. “Malcolm Turnbull is ambitious for himself, not the nation.”

5.45pm  Annabel Crabb on ABC’s The Drum, hosted by Julia Baird, made the point that the fact Julie Bishop had intervened, a step she hasn’t previously taken, is indicative of the tumult. She described Malcolm Tunrbull’s ‘short, sharp and brutal’  assessment of Tony Abbott as a bold display of “frontstabbing.”

4.30pm Reports emerged that the deputy leader and foreign minister Julie Bishop visited Tony Abbott earlier today and asked him to stand aside. She is understood to be supporting Malcolm Turnbull’s challenge.

4pm. Malcolm Turnbull addressed the press in Canberra and confirmed he had challenged Tony Abbott and resigned from his position in Cabinet.

“It is clear enough that the government is not successful in providing the economic leadership that we need…he is not capable of providing the economic confidence that business needs.”

“Now we are living as Australians in the most exciting time. The big economic changes that we’re living through here and around the world offer enormous challenges and enormous opportunities. And we need a different style of leadership. We need a style of leadership that explains those challenges and opportunities, explains the challenges and how to seize the opportunities.”

“A style of leadership that respects the people’s intelligence, that explains these complex issues and then sets out the course of action we believe we should take and makes a case for it. We need advocacy, not slogans. We need to respect the intelligence of the Australian people. Now if we continue with Mr Abbott as Prime Minister, it is clear enough what will happen. He will cease to be Prime Minister and he’ll be succeeded by Mr Shorten. You only have to seethe catastrophically reckless approach of Mr Shorten to the China-Australia free trade agreement, surely one of the most important foundations of our prosperity, to know he is utterly unfit to be Prime Minister of this country and so he will be if we do not make a change.”

“We need an open government, an open government that recognises that there is an enormous sum of wisdom both within our colleagues in this building and, of course, further afield. But above all we have to remember that we have a great example of good Cabinet government. John Howard’s government most of us served in and yet few would say that the Cabinet government of Mr Abbott bears any similarity to the style of Mr Howard. So that’s what we need to go back to.”

“We have to make a change for our country’s sake, for the government’s sake for the party’s sake.”

Malcolm Turnbull did not take questions at the end of his pitch for the Liberal party leadership.

3.45 pm.  Malcolm Turnbull has met with Prime Minister Tony Abbott and will challenge for the Liberal party leadership.  He has also resigned from Cabinet. The foreign minister, and deputy leader, Julie Bishop has also met with the Prime Minister earlier this afternoon. It is understood Malcolm Turnbull will make a statement at 4pm.