Abbot's comments were caught on video at a community forum in Sale, Victoria, on Tuesday.

This comes as the Coalition is making an attempt to appeal to female voters by calling for subsidies for employing nannies.

A woman said to Abbot: “Get some of those jackets off her.”

He replied: “I know, I know, I know. Germaine Greer was right on this subject.”

Greer said on TV last week:  "What I want her to do is get rid of those bloody jackets!

"They don't fit. Every time she turns around, you've got that strange horizontal crease which means they're cut too narrow in the hips. You've got a big arse, Julia, just get on with it."

The opposition leader’s office has not said anything further about the comments.