http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/12789615/rudd-plotting-leadership-cha...

Coalition frontbenchers have been told to expect Kevin Rudd to challenge Prime Minister Julia Gillard for the Labor leadership before the Queensland state election in March.

The shadow cabinet is meeting for the first time in 2012 in Canberra on Thursday.

Mr Abbott foreshadowed the government would be hammered on the Fair Work Australia investigation of embattled Labor MP Craig Thomson during Senate estimates hearings later in February.

Mr Thomson is accused of misusing a union credit card before he entered parliament.

"The government has had the most chaotic start to the year that anyone can remember," Mr Abbott said.

"There was the Andrew Wilkie betrayal, the duplicity over the Australia Day protests, the continuing instability in their leadership ... and the institutional go slow over Craig Thomson."

Fair Work Australia have been investigating the claims for three years.

Mr Abbott says the opposition will demand the government comes clean on allegations of collusion with the independent workplace authority.

"The government has to release all of the details of all of the contact between ministers, prime ministers, their offices and Fair Work Australia," he said.

Deputy leader Julie Bishop told shadow cabinet Mr Rudd would soon get his revenge against Ms Gillard.

"I expect there will be a challenge to Julia Gillard's leadership in the next few weeks," she said, adding it would be before the Queensland election on March 24.

Ms Bishop described the government as "divided dysfunctional rabble."

"The level of distrust and division within government is profound," she said.

"Senior ministers are publicly attacking each other and Kevin Rudd is more likely to attend one of our meetings than Julia Gillard's."

Ms Bishop said the government needed time in opposition to sort out its personality problems.
"In the meantime we're getting on with the job of preparing plans for the future," she said.

LOL  the rightards think lefties are obsessed with Abbott,but the rightards are so scared sh itless that Labor will bring back Rudd who will then in turn kick phony tonys ass. Too funny.

I'm with you rightards on this,Rudd is a wanker, but anything is better than Abbott.

Either party will romp it in with a good leader.

I dont care who leads, or which party delivers it, but I want a carbon price and an NBN, and to unwind either automatically loses my vote.

That may sound like a snipe at Abbott (who will do both) but its also a snipe at Gillard / Rudd if they lose their nerve.

You righties. 

I hope Rudd does challenge soon. That way his face can be duly rubbed in it and we'll move on. But I doubt it'll happen - Rudd (like Costello and unlike most of you righties) knows how to count.

The carbon Price - you and I all know its lies and corruption from the political class to get more money out of us for their personal welfare and super....They already clawed back all of the compensation they promised pensioners...lies, lies, lies.