There probably is some depth of yet-to-be imagined perfidy Malcolm Turnbull or his son, Alex, will descend to before the next federal election but no-one should dwell upon that possibility now.

The Liberal party cannot afford to obsess upon its biggest mistake in its 74-year history. Turnbull fits the classic medical description of a narcissist: ‘emotions can be unstable and intense, and there is excessive concern with vanity, prestige, power, and personal adequacy.