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Four Liberal MPs who publicly backed the February spill motion to replace Tony Abbott have hailed the Coalition's second budget, while dismissing the prospect of another challenge to the Prime Minister.
And Liberal MP Michael Sukkar, who holds the most marginal seat in Victoria, says the second Abbott budget's small business package will be a big vote winner in the electorate.
Mr Abbott has clearly won back support from internal critics on his own backbench with the government's second budget after a political "near death experience" on February 9, in which he defeated a leadership spill motion 61-39 despite no other declared candidate in the race.
The Prime Minister subsequently promised significant shifts in policy and to consult his backbench more widely, with Tuesday's budget framed as a key test in his quest to revive his political fortunes and hang on to the top job.
Liberal MP Mal Brough, a former cabinet minister in the Howard government who in January confirmed he had been approached to challenge the Prime Minister, said there had been a very positive response in his electorate to the budget, particularly in relation to the small business measures.
"It's getting the balance more in sync with where the public are. If we are able to create confidence, grow the economy...we will see a significant boost to how people are feeling," he said.
"There is a hell of a lot more work to be done to reduce the deficit, I'm not running away from that big challenge and neither is anyone else."
Mr Brough dismissed questions about another spill motion, adding that what had happened in February was "a reflection on the fact that we weren't engaged in a way that the public wanted us to".
Since then the Prime Minister and the Treasurer and everyone else in the cabinet had been much more inclusive, he added.
"There is an acknowledgement that it is a much better and more inclusive government," he said.
Queensland Liberal MP Andrew Laming, one of Mr Abbott's most vocal critics in the lead up to and after the February spill, told Fairfax Media there was now "zero chance" of another spill motion and that the second budget was a "considerable improvement" on the first one.
"Back in January there were four things we wanted to fix and the message hadn't got through, our request for changes hadn't got through, all four of those issues have been addressed," he said.
"It's the Medicare co-payment, defence pay, indexation of pensions and the possibility of penalty rates changes for low income workers through the Productivity Commission report. All of those four are now definitively off the table."
Wyatt Roy, another Queenslander who backed the spill motion following the disastrous defeat of Premier Campbell Newman's first-term state government, said the small business package - which will allow small businesses will be able to claim an unlimited number of tax deductions for equipment and other items valued at less than $20,000 each - would make an "enormous difference" in his electorate.
"We have prove to the Australian people that we can achieve the reform that out country needs and that doesn't happen overnight, it doesn't happen in a single budget, we can look to the reforms [New Zealand Prime Minister] John Key made or [UK Prime Minister] David Cameron made and see that it takes a significant period of time," he said.
"We have to earn the respect of the Australian people, his budget is an important step in the right direction."
And Victorian MP Sharman Stone praised the budget, saying she doubted there would be an early election and predicted an improvement in the government's standing in the polls.
She said the chances of another spill motion were now "not great".
"I think it was very important at the time, of course I outed myself as an active participant in that, I thought it was desperately needed at the time but Tony and his fellow cabinet ministers have made enormous efforts, it was a real wake-up call. Things are vastly different and better now," she said.
"It was a tough scenario, it had to be done, and I think it did the job."
Mr Sukkar, an Abbott supporter who holds Deakin - the most marginal seat in Victoria - by just 3.2 per cent, said the small business measures were squarely targeted at the Coalition's "natural constituency".
"We can't rely on top 50, top 100 ASX-listed companies for the growth, the investment and creating new jobs," he said.
"The reality is they are sitting on healthy balance sheets and for whatever reason, releasing that capital is not happening so I think changing tack and trying to turbo charge small businesses will have the greatest economic impact. It also appeals very strongly to our natural constituency," he said.
"And we have sensibly improved the budget bottom line. I think slowly but surely is more likely to get us there, rather than going too hard and damaging confidence. So I am pleased."
