It won’t get any better than last night for Labor, with virtually made-to-order media coverage (except for that galoot in budgie smugglers), plenty of emphasis on WorkChoices — Labor will be delighted journalists recalled the Mark Latham comparison when Abbott signed the commitment – and Gillard talking to an ordinary Aussie family — almost certainly the sort that set their alarm early and work hard. The Liberals have got off to a shocker of a start. But that means only one thing: things will get better. And still over four weeks to go.

Julia Gillard targets another ‘population seat’ today with a visit to the outer-Sydney seat of Macquarie, where Bob Debus is retiring and his Labor successor Susan Templeman is up against Louise Markus, who knows a thing or two about appealing to the baser prejudices of outer suburban voters. Last week Crikey revealed Macquarie is where a particularly blunt flyer is being direct-mailed to voters presenting Gillard’s credentials as an advocate for a “sustainable Australia” in direct contrast to Kevin Rudd.

According to yesterday’s Essential Research poll, Julia Gillard’s lead over Tony Abbott is twice as large among women as among men. Worse for Abbott is … it’s even 15 points among men.

Abbott needs to stop talking about WorkChoices. Barring a dramatic policy announcement, the only way is to play a straight bat to every question about it and say he has covered the issue in detail already and will not be adding to his answers. It will make for a day of painful interviews and bad headlines but the demands of the media cycle mean journalists will have to move on and by next week will be distant in the rear-view mirror.

Peter Costello’s mockery of “moving forward” didn’t help at all yesterday. It wasn’t just the reminder that in Costello the Liberals had a leader who could have romped to victory this time around but who never had the bottle for the job even when it was offered to him on a platter. Costello’s mimicry might have revved up the faithful but it looked bad on the evening news. In question time, some men on both sides of politics reflexively mimic female opponents’ voices, like they’re back in the schoolyard. It never looks good, let alone — dare I use a word of patriarchal oppression — gentlemanly.