LIZ Truss has been backed to hold on to the majority Boris Johnson secured for the Tories, by the former Prime Minister of Australia.
In an exclusive interview with GB News Tony Abbott said Ms Truss could also be trusted to deliver on Brexit.
He told Nigel Farage: “Look, I think she was a fine Trade Minister. Like all of us, I suppose she’s been on a journey. There are some positions that she held in her youth that she wouldn’t hold today. But in a sense a lot of people are made by those “roads to Damascus” moments, and it’s not where you start, it’s where you finish. That is what really matters. So I am very confident that both of the candidates would do a good job.
“But I certainly know Liz and I am confident that she is a solid Conservative, who wants to get things done, and will be a worthy successor to Boris Johnson. She has every chance of holding on to the magnificent majority that Boris Johnson built and, and will do everything that’s needed to build on the opportunities that Brexit should give to global Britain.”
Mr Abbott, who spearheaded Australia’s successful attempt to regain their waters from boats to and from Indonesia, also explained how he believes the Rwanda policy “is a step in the right direction”.
He said: “In the end, and I’m talking about Australia, you’ve got to have the will to do it and the problem was the previous government didn’t have the will to do it.
“And I remember going into a very early meeting of very senior officials with heavy responsibilities in this area and I was told that we might risk serious conflict with Indonesia.
“To which I said: ‘So be it. If boats were coming from Australia to Indonesia do we think for a second that the Indonesians would hesitate in taking the strongest possible action in stopping these boats?’
“Serious countries do not allow themselves to be taken advantage of by criminal gangs who are smuggling people in for all sorts of purposes as well as people who just want a better life.”
He added: “One way or another the British Government just has to say that the way is closed.
“And I think the Rwanda deal was a big step in the right direction, it’s a real pity that the legal work had not been done to avoid the jurisdiction of that European court.
“But I understand there’s a step in train to avoid anything like that in the future.”
His comments come after a record number of Channel crossings so far this year.
More than 20,000 people have been detected crossing the English Channel in small boats since January, Government figures show.
Some 607 were detected on Saturday – the third time the total has topped 600 since the start of 2022.
There were 28,526 crossings detected throughout the whole of 2021. By this point last year, just over 11,300 crossings had been made.
The former Australian Prime Minister said he was also “encouraged not to support Brexit” in the lead up to the vote.
He added: “I was torn because emotionally I have always been a Brexiteer”.
