Federal Election 2016: Who won day 18?

Malcolm Turnbull was in dire need of support today — and he got it, taking an important step towards regaining ground.

Malcolm Turnbull was in dire need of support today — and he got it.

Bill Shorten had a strong start to the week after gaining ground in Monday’s Newspoll and then winning Tuesday thanks to the government’s unforced errors with its $67 billion claim about the cost of Labor policies.

On Wednesday morning, Turnbull took an important step towards regaining ground. He ended his self-imposed ban on talking to radio host Alan Jones, whose 2GB radio show is not only has tens of thousands of listeners in Sydney but now reaches Queensland as well. There were no fireworks, Jones was generally supportive and the Prime Minister was finally reaching an audience he needs in order to win.

PM Malcolm Turnbull visits Daisy's Garden Supplies in Ringwood, where he was presented with a drawing of himself by nine-year old Somer, daughter of employee Lisa. Picture: Mike Keating.

... and here is Somer’s drawing of Malcolm Turnbull. Picture: Mike Keating.

Turnbull also gained more support from business on Wednesday, in the form of a policy blueprint from the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry on behalf of its 70 member groups and their 300,000 employer members. The ACCI statement riled Labor and the unions but shows some groups are willing to speak up for the government’s plan to cut company taxes.

Oddly, Turnbull did not even mention this when he appeared in Victoria to announce funding for the Puffing Billy steam train in La Trobe, where Liberal MP Jason Wood is trying to save his seat. A sharper campaign would make sure every possible voter knew that employers were loudly backing the economic plan the Prime Minister keeps talking about.

Both sides had trouble with candidates — now one of the themes of the campaign. Turnbull had to deal with the sudden departure of the Liberal candidate for the regional NSW seat of Whitlam, who declared she was a “general with no troops” and returned to her life in Mosman. Shorten had bigger problems with candidates: more questions about why Northern Territory Senator Nova Peris was quitting, a public call by Janelle Saffin and Justine Elliott to cut diesel fuel rebates for miners — contrary to Labor policy — and an admission from David Feeney that has undisclosed house in Melbourne has been the biggest own-goal of the campaign.

The furore over the “black hole” in Labor costings looked dreadful for the government on Tuesday, but Scott Morrison and Mathias Cormann regrouped. The focus on costings is turning into a problem for Labor. Day by day, there are more questions over spending cuts that Labor opposes — as seen late on Wednesday when Feeney could not tell Sky News what the party’s policy was on the Schoolkids Bonus. This is no small matter: it is worth more than $1bn a year to families.

When Shorten was asked about costings, he vowed to act on budget repair. So far, however, his policies are mostly about increasing taxes rather than cutting spending.

Finally, there was a policy development that mattered to the real world: help for struggling dairy farmers with $55 million in Dairy Recovery Concessional Loans this year, to be followed by $500 million in concessional loans in 2016-17 and 2017-18. Shorten had a policy plan too, in the form of $8 million for ovarian cancer research, but the government had the bigger impact.

Who won the day?

After two days where Shorten got the better of Turnbull, the government team held its ground. On policy and politics, the day went better for Turnbull.