It was an eye-opener to see Peter Dutton backing out from his ‘work from home’ policy. He blamed it on Labor lies saying he only meant workers in Canberra.

Does he think we’re that silly?

Jane Hume, his shadow finance minister, was explicit when she stated on 5 March: “It will be an expectation of a Dutton Liberal government that all members of the APS work from the office five days a week.

Then, in his next classic backflip, Mr Dutton said the 41,000 public service jobs added by Labor to be cut would pertain to those in Canberra. Except three of the four jobs added have been outside Canberra.

Labor has argued that this Newmanesque gesture will impact veterans and welfare recipients who had already been forced to wait weeks and months under the Coalition for their payments. Dutton has promised “frontline” positions would be spared, but he has hinted that education and health personnel could be affected.

These are spectacular about-turns for a man toted by many in Newspoll to be ‘decisive and strong’.