Nationals MP Darren Chester has told Australians "We owe you an apology" for the unbelievable drama in Parliament House this week.
Australia. We owe you an apology. I’m sorry. You deserve better than many of the things our Federal Parliament has served up to you for the past 10 years. Believe me: there’s a lot of good people on both sides of the chamber and we can do better. Don’t give up. #auspol #shitday https://t.co/3Sje2H5IcG
In a tweet Thursday night Chester told Australians "I'm sorry" for what politicians have dished up over the past decade, and urged them not to give up because there are good people in parliament.
Chester, the minister for veteran's affairs, has watched on this week as his party's Coalition partner, the Liberal party, has descended into chaotic infighting over the leadership.
Knives have been circling sitting prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who won a surprise leadership ballot on Tuesday morning but has continued to be dogged by lead challenger Peter Dutton.
The week has seen half the cabinet resign and further challengers treasurer Scott Morrison and Liberal deputy Julie Bishop came out of the woodwork.
On Thursday, to great disdain from the Labor opposition, the government adjourned parliament until the next sitting in September to deal with its internal crisis.
"I am appalled and disappointed and the people contacting my office are of that view as well. They quite frankly want us to get focus back on them," Chester told Radio National on Friday.
"Every second, every minute I spend on your program or any other program talking about myself or talking about internal machinations of the National or Liberal party, Australians are switching off and they're frustrated by that.
"I am sorry for the Australian people, they’ve seen the past 10 years where prime ministers have been deposed in this manner twice by Bill Shorten and the Labor party and now it seems to me that we’re going down that pathway ourselves ... It’s been a sad week to watch this to unfold."
Several other government MPs have expressed their extreme frustration at the leadership tensions.