Invention of new categories of political promise

Others, we learnt, such as certain tax cuts and the National Disability Insurance Scheme, are more like frocks you hold up to your face in the mirror for a bit to see if they match your colouring.  But the invention of exciting new categories of promise never did a politician any harm.

It was Mr Abbott's great political role model, John Howard, who spoke of core and non-core promises. He paid no great price for his linguistic stretches.  And, who knows? Mr Abbott's new genus of promise could catch on.  Henceforth teenagers can inform parents they ''aspire'' to be home by curfew and altar-bound couples can pledge life-long fidelity ''in prospect''.

The second thing that happened yesterday was that Mr Abbott looked and sounded prime ministerial.

Aspirational opposition leader is careful with thep-word