There was nothing resembling a Dorothy Dixer for Mr Turnbull, who got bogged down in an inch-by-inch, trench-warfare-type interview with Leigh Sales - his first prime-time sit-down on national TV since the campaign began. Prime time interviews such as Leigh Sales going head to head with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull could be shunted back later in the ABC schedule. While the Prime Minister came armed with his now overly-familiar three-word slogan of "jobs and growth", Sales was interested in two critical questions, both of which stem from the day in September when Tony Abbott was felled. "Isn't it the case that if your colleagues had known that this is where you would be [in the polls] three weeks before an election, they wouldn't have backed you to replace Tony Abbott?", Sales asked. In an echo of how Mr Abbott used to deal with questions on his polling - which, it must be said, was worse than Mr Turnbull's is now - the PM insisted he was "interested in the people of Australia" rather than himself.

"I am the PM, my job is to deliver for Australians. I am not going to be drawn into that kind of introspection," he said. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull feels the heat from Leigh Sales on ABC's 7.30 on Wednesday night. "The viewers watching us tonight want to know how I am going to ensure that we have a strong economy, that their children and grandchildren can get good jobs ... That is what they want to know. That is what I am focused on. I am not very interested at all in opinion polls." The second plank of Sales' inquisition was the existence of the "coherent economic message" that Mr Turnbull claimed in September had been missing from team Abbott-Hockey. Bill Shorten has been far more effective than the Coalition at turning the volume of Labor's campaign up and down Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

"Do you accept far from establishing a coherent message, your delay in announcing policy and your 'wishy-washiness', as one of your own backbenchers put it, has confused and disillusioned voters?" Sales asked. Mr Turnbull returned to his promise to deliver stronger economic growth in response. A woman takes a selfie with Opposition Leader Bill Shorten after the peoples' forum. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen He also began to pitch directly to voters to give him the chance to deliver over three years with an election mandate. "We are seeing strong business confidence, strong levels of employment growth and that is because my Government's economic plan is working. I need three more years to complete it. That is what I am seeking from the Australian people," he said.

He followed up with a plea for Coalition voters to back his government in the Senate rather than just the House of Representatives. Sales' line of questioning did not make it easy for Mr Turnbull to get on to the biggest campaign development of the day, Labor's admission that its deficits would be worse over the four-year forwards estimates. He failed to prosecute. Mr Shorten was still mingling with his Queensland audience as the tally came through: 57 of the 100 people at the forum were more likely to vote for the Labor leader than when they had walked in. The most optimistic view for Mr Turnbull is that he ground out a nil-all draw with Sales. Follow us on Twitter