It was a massive mistake. A massive, massive mistake.

The Liberal Party of Victoria knew that the mother of all scare campaigns was about to dawn on the Victorian public.

The Labor Party, after all, does campaigning much better than it does government. And it does negative campaigning better than anyone else. Credit where it’s due.

With nearly four weeks until pre-polling begins in Victoria, the first sniff of Labor’s negative campaign was anticipated. What would it be?

And on cue came its ‘non-political’ decision to make the entire abortion journey a free ride for those choosing to kill their unborn baby. All medication, scans, tests, travel costs, and accommodation would be free. Taxpayers of Victoria – we thank you.

And to prove the announcement was entirely non-political, the Premier’s wife Fiona Rothville was interviewed by journalists about it. She, of course, thought it was a terrific idea that builds ‘on the Labor legacy’. She rejected claims that she was politicising it, claiming instead that ‘it is fundamental to the women in this state’.

So, there you have it: the Lefty Ladies in full sisterhood solidarity – and speaking on behalf of all females.

Having sat in the political wings for the last 21 of 25 years, the Liberal machine was surely ready and waiting for such an obvious page to turn in Labor’s election playbook.

But at first sight, the knees buckled – the Liberal Leader, Jess Wilson and her HQ brains trust – picked Labor’s low-hanging fruit and took a big, juicy bite.

It was a total failure of policy, pride, and principle.

While Jess Wilson has proven she can jump puddles, she is increasingly being seen by some as an ice maiden with a jelly spine whose true political instincts are to vote for the Voice and to cheer on the climate change fanatics. Her maiden speech to the Parliament in February 2023 would have made Greta proud. She gushed about ‘climate action’, acknowledging her previous five years were spent on ‘energy and climate policy’ and ‘solutions to achieving a Net Zero economy’.

Good grief.

It should be no surprise then, when at the first hint of pressure, she reverted to her true-north instincts and backed Labor’s new abortion policy.

No need to wonder why One Nation is attracting attention. It’s called choice, people.

Given the hideous state of Victoria’s $200 billion debt, Wilson could have simply used an economic argument and said – at worst – nice idea Ben, but we can’t afford it.

Jess Wilson’s decision to fully fund all aspects of abortion has left every other medically unwell regional Victorian feeling sicker: those with involuntary conditions such as cancers, MND, or those with broken hips, heads, and hearts.

How should they feel about the decision which leaves them heading to Melbourne for life-saving treatments and surgeries – and having to pay their own way?

The moral to the story is this: if the treatment you seek is to end a life, the state will pay the bill. If you seek lifesaving or life-affirming treatment – for a condition over which you have no choice – then you must pay your own way.

Or is it that Ms Wilson is intending to announce a policy seeking to pay the transport and accommodation bills for every regional Victorian requiring medical support in the Big Smoke?

And what of equality? What medical freebies are the men going to get?

Perhaps we don’t need to worry given the Carroll-Wilson abortion policy would surely include those men going for an abortion? We know the Sex Discrimination Commission, Dr Anna Cody, told a Senate hearing in May this year that men can be ‘potentially pregnant’. One can only assume, then, that if they can be ‘potentially pregnant’, men could also have a ‘potential abortion’.

Simple.

Given the dangerous state of Victoria’s roads due to potholes, people from country areas are already spending more on transport and accommodation needs relating to medical appointments and surgeries. Once upon a time, they knew they could leave their remote area in the early morning and still get to their appointment on time. These days, country patients talk of leaving home the day before – factoring in time to deal with a potential pothole disaster and the cascade of troubles that follow, including missing long-awaited surgery.

So, who pays their additional costs?

Not Ben. Not Jess. Just the patient.

One hopes that One Nation holds firm and doesn’t pick the poisoned apple held out by Labor and munched on by Wilson. So far, so good.

This abortion policy was Labor’s obvious first test of Jess Wilson and her campaign team – and they failed. All they had to say was ‘we’re not changing our position’ and dare for a debate.

What’s next if she can’t argue the simplest case?

And so it is that Victoria moves closer to full-blown socialism where the mob supersedes the rights of the individual, the government pays all and reliance on the state increases.

For the Labor-Like Liberals, this is a case of bad policy chasing bad policy: a race to the political bowels where equality, principles and financial prudence were flushed out long ago.

One can only assume Wilson’s abortion decision was made in conjunction with Georgie Crozier, the Liberal’s Health spokesperson. She originally hails from Western Victoria where kangaroos can still be found jumping about in the top paddock.

She, of all frontbenchers, should understand the tyranny of distance facing all Victorians, especially sick ones.

She should have led the fight against this pathetic political game, this bribe. But she didn’t.

She has made a massive mistake. A massive, massive mistake.