The Abbott family has been in the headlines this week, with questions about a $60,000 scholarship awarded to daughter Frances and grumblings over an overseas government job given to eldest child Louise.
Now the prime minister's wife Margie has been criticised by Julia Gillard's partner Tim Mathieson for not doing enough charity work in her role as first lady.
The latest salvo has sparked an angry response from the government, which is pointing the finger squarely at Labor's top man.
"I believe very strongly that this is an orchestrated attack by Bill Shorten and it needs to stop," senior government minister Peter Dutton told Network Ten on Sunday.
"I think it's quite repugnant."
Margie Abbott would be "hurt" by the comments because she'd been heavily involved in charity work for a number of years, the health minister added.
The scrutiny over his daughter's academic scholarship at the Whitehouse Institute of Design prompted an angry rebuke from the prime minister, who accused some media outlets of "dirt digging".
"I think families should be left out of it," he told reporters.
Mr Dutton said Australians would be offended by the personal nature of this latest attack, and suggested hypocrisy was at play.
"I'm not sure when the feminists will stand up from the Greens and the Labor party that would otherwise feign outrage," he said.
From Here
I wonder when they're going to dig up something on Bridget?
