He warned however that while this week's interest rate rises by banks were a commercial matter "there's always the potential" for such rises to harm a soft economy, describing them as "a very big signal" and their impact on household budgets "a significant one". The centre is where Australian politics is won or lost: can Turnbull shift his party to it? Credit:Andrew Meares "Let me put it this way, the justification that they gave was not sufficient to explain the level of the increase that they made, in our view," he said. And in the same week he celebrated the passage of the China-Australia free trade agreement through the House of Representatives, he said it was nonetheless critical that Australia spoke frankly to Beijing against its strategic expansion in the South and East China seas. "Modern China is built upon an assertion of national sovereignty, and that is why we say to China, the Australian people stand up ... we have to be very, very clear-eyed in what we are seeking to achieve," he said.

Stressing innovation and adaptability, the Prime Minister, who weeks ago embraced the creativity of the National Reform Summit, reiterated that all policy ideas were back "on the table" including, in sharp contrast to the Abbott-Hockey approach, those on the revenue side of the budget. It has been five weeks since Malcolm Turnbull successfully challenged Tony Abbott for the Liberal leadership. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen That switch has left open the prospect of new or increased taxes, and of clipping back tax breaks for the wealthy – as Labor has proposed for superannuation – to deal with a budget facing problems he acknowledged were on both the revenue and spending sides. "Everything, every single element, is on the table, and I know that always means that someone can then run a scare campaign, but I'm sorry, we've got to stop … this is part of the political tradition I'm determined to end. We have got to be able to consider policy options in an unfettered way," he said. One of those has already found favour: an enlarged role for the federal government under the Turnbull leadership. It could see important economy enhancing projects, including roads, urban public transit, ports and water infrastructure, financed directly through Commonwealth borrowings or in partnership with state and local governments and the private sector, taking advantage of historically low interest rates.

Arguing such thinking "changes the paradigm", he said it made more sense for the Commonwealth to "have a piece" of major infrastructure, than to simply dish out grants and walk away. "We don't need the same internal rate of return as Macquarie Bank would, obviously, but if we have a piece of it, then we're able to invest more, frankly," he said. "Then we're much better off being a partner rather than simply being an ATM, for which you get generally scant thanks or recognition." Also dispatched to history from the Abbott-era was the edict that urban rail was the exclusive province of state governments. "We shouldn't discriminate urban mass transit, urban rail. It's sort of a penetrating glimpse of the obvious. I know it's change but, why would you discriminate between one mode of transport and another?" he argued.

Asked about one of the key foundations of policy under former treasurer Joe Hockey, who had famously lectured Australians about their entitlement mentality, Mr Turnbull was equally clear. "I wouldn't use that language," he said. Those comments were a flat repudiation of the parting words of Mr Hockey, who told Parliament on Wednesday that his 2012 "end of the age of entitlement speech" had been the most significant single contribution to the national economic debate in 20 years. But in a sign of the sensitivity of his role at the helm of a still shocked and divided party room, Mr Turnbull was measured when asked what had changed materially since his promotion. "Well I am who I am, with any change of leadership of a political party, especially one that's in government, there are many elements of continuity and also elements of change," he said, noting he had been in the job for five weeks. "But people can already see changes, there are changes of direction, changes of style, Tony Abbott is Tony Abbott, and [he and] I are different people."

On other areas, he indicated that his government would deliver a 2016 budget, dismissing suggestions of an election before the three-year term is up in September. Loading Also brushed off was the prospect of a political stoush with Labor over penalty rates, which he said was a matter for the Fair Work Commission. Follow us on Twitter