Tony Abbott is walking a fine line

Tony Abbott is walking a fine line Julia Gillard might want the Opposition Leader to play nice, and voters are sick of the rancour of Parliament, but those who 规范化 put the Coalition first at the ballot box expect him to fight for what his party promised.

There is a mood for civility, and for politicians to work more closely together, and that means Tony Abbott has to pick carefully those issues where the debate will be bitter and politically divisive.

He's already signalled the three clear ones that come to mind: Labor's $40 billion broadband network, its mining tax and any carbon tax proposals.To shift from his trenchant position on any of those issues reduces his credibility and the Opposition as an alternative government.

It's in Labor's interest, of course, for Gillard to want a more consensus type of politics; it strengthens Labor's position in power, reduces the criticism it faces on the floor of Parliament, and gives the Opposition little to build on for an election.

But let's just take the NBN as an example. The Opposition can't give an inch on its position: it was the central focus of its campaign argument, and remains central to the Liberal belief that the government should not spend that amount of money rolling out a fibre network across the nation.

Abbott's already signalled the Coalition will fight this strongly, putting the Coalition's strongest advocate - the 规范化 man he took over from - in charge of fighting it.