Tony Abbott sunglasses selfie an amusing distraction from leadership crisis

The Australian PM was photographed wearing the reflective sunglasses on a visit to a timberyard

The moment Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott winked during a serious radio phone-in last year (ABC News (Australia))

It hasn't been going well for Tony Abbott as of late.

His allies suffered a humiliating election defeat in Queensland, he's been mocked for choosing to knight Prince Phillip, and it looks increasingly likely that he'll face a leadership challenge from his own party.

But at least he can still pull off a pair of outrageous sunglasses.

Post by Emerson Smith.

The Australian Prime Minister was touring a timber yard in Victorian on Friday when he met part-time worker Emerson Smith.

As is custom when meeting a prominent politician, Smith asked for a selfie, and supplied Abbott a pair of reflective sunglasses.

In a Facebook post that devolved into incomprehensible slang, Smith said: "Old mate Tony Abbot didn't even hesitate when I asked him to throw on my speed dealers today even insisting that we were to have some Friday arvo skitz times."

Richard Willingham, a journalist with The Age, was also on hand to capture the moment.

Smith told Mashable: "I heard he was coming to work so I thought I'd bring the ridiculous sunnies with me in the hope I would have the chance to get the snap.

"He was pretty hesitant but I said: 'Don't you wanna be the cool Prime Minister?' And he was a pretty good sport about it and threw them on."

It wasn't long before Abbott memes were cropping up on Twitter. Here are some of the best:

And unless the image is used to further hurt his leadership, Abbott may well welcome a respite from the toxicity of intra-party politics.