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Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has dismissed Prime Minister Tony Abbott's suggestion that sexism could be behind attacks on his chief of staff Peta Credlin.
Some ministers and MPs have privately, and in some cases publicly, blamed Ms Credlin for the Government's problems and accused her of micromanaging.
Who is Peta Credlin?
- Credlin has worked for Tony Abbott since 2009, when he was opposition leader
- Prior to 2009 she was chief of staff to both Brendan Nelson and Malcolm Turnbull
- In June, Clive Palmer accused her of masterminding the Government's paid parental leave scheme for her own benefit; he later said he regretted the comments
- In 2013, she was caught drink-driving - blowing 0.075 when breathalysed on her way home from Mr Abbott's budget reply speech - but escaped punishment
- In 2013, long-serving senator Ian Macdonald criticised her and the PM's office for its "obsessive centralised control phobia"
- She was an adviser to former Howard government minister Richard Alston
- She spoke publicly in 2013 about her unsuccessful attempts to conceive through IVF
Mr Abbott this week defended Ms Credlin's performance and suggested that sexism could be behind the attacks.
His comment angered Liberal backbencher Warren Entsch, who made an official complaint against Mr Abbott with the party's whip, Philip Ruddock.
Ms Bishop today said Ms Credlin was an "essential part" of the Coalition team, adding that she would not characterise the criticism in gender terms.
"That's not the way I would put it", Ms Bishop told Sky News.
"I've been on the record many times saying that I don't view the world through a prism of gender.
"I never have, I never will. But I think it's reflecting the Prime Minister's frustration that anonymous sources have been making complaints about his chief of staff.
"If people have got a problem with the Prime Minister's office, go and talk to the Prime Minister."
Ms Bishop also addressed issues regarding her working relationship with Ms Credlin and claims it had deteriorated.
"She and I have a very professional, close working relationship [and] we've worked together for a very long time," Ms Bishop said.
"I think this is all a distraction, an absolute distraction, from what the Australian people expect from the Government, and that is to get on with the business of governing and that's what we're going to do."
Ms Bishop urged colleagues to raise any issues directly with the Prime Minister's office and not through the media.
Treasurer Joe Hockey has declined to comment on the issue.
Topics: federal-government, government-and-politics, canberra-2600, australia
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