Stage 3 tax backflip saw Anthony Albanese's entry into the annals of one liners that were a good idea at the time

"My word is my bond," said Anthony Albanese not long after becoming PM, after a campaign where every second question addressed to the former student socialist centred around whether he was absolutely, truly, reeeaaallly as committed as he claimed to handing back billions of dollars to the nation's wealthiest taxpayers.

It was a pledge automatically screaming for a sceptical response, like Lady Gaga promising to dress down, or Bob Katter ABSOLUTELY assuring you he'll keep his remarks concise. But: the Labor leader's word was his bond, he said.

What he didn't mention back then was that when he said "bond", he was thinking "US Treasury bonds, 1842".

And so, with this week's parliamentary confirmation that in fact, the Stage 3 legislated tax cuts are going to have a teeny bit of retooling, "My word is my bond" joins "There will be no carbon tax under a government that I lead", "I don't hold a hose, mate", "We've lost 30 Newspolls in a row" and "This is the greatest moral challenge of our generation" in the annals of political statements that seemed like a good idea at the time.

And of course, at the time, strategically, promising to keep the legislated cuts was an entirely good idea for Mr Albanese, in whose rear-vision mirror the plume of acrid smoke from Bill Shorten's boldly redistributive 2019 campaign platform was still clearly visible.

The prime minister, obviously, is now wagering that people won't mind him breaking a promise if it lands them some extra cash in their pockets (and hopes that those wealthy enough to be worse off than they would have been either have bleeding hearts or would have never voted for Labor anyway). That said, the PM seemed very keen to insist he was AN HONEST PERSON, DAVID, when interviewed by David Speers on Insiders on Sunday.

And again, though this time more tetchily, with 7.30 host Sarah Ferguson on Tuesday.

Despite the government's fond hopes that the Coalition would go to the mattresses over the promised tax cuts and thus open up a pleasantly profitable class war, Liberal leader Peter Dutton decided that discretion was the better part of valour and the opposition will now vote in Parliament for a tax cut package with which they heartily disagree. Just like Anthony Albanese did in 2019. (Hey Siri: Why is trust in politics at record lows?)

Awlrighty, so what tax policy will the Coalition take to the NEXT election? Speers reckons there's suddenly a lot of Bill Shorten about Peter Dutton.

The winter of our disconnect

In other news, the government this week secured enough Upper House votes to legislate its "Closing Loopholes" tranche of industrial relations reforms, including minimum wages for workers in the gig economy.

The bill is opposed by the Coalition, but hobby guitarist and Employment Minister Tony Burke (who is understood never to have been paid anything near industry rates for his music) this week finally collected enough Senate crossbenchers – truly, the gig economy workers of the Senate, with no safety net of a superannuation fund board position, appointment to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal or diplomatic posting should they lose their seat come election time – to get the legislation through.

Also included is a "right to disconnect", which sounds excitingly like legislative endorsement to hang up on your boss but is actually the right not to respond to emails and calls outside work hours.

Opponents have argued that the regulation is onerous on employers, and makes us look like France, where a similar right was legislated in 2017. It is not known to what extent the French labour code — which famously is longer than War and Peace and outlaws the eating of lunch at one's desk, and forbids the consumption of alcohol at work unless it's wine, beer or cider which are all fine — continues to inspire Mr Burke. Mon Dieu! The possibilities are endless!

Sacking PMs so much easier than in France

Odd that the French law against lunching al desko should come up. It was one of the cultural differences that reportedly caused low-level difficulties between the French and Australian workers on the $50 billion Future Subs agreement signed in 2016 by then PM Malcolm Turnbull.

The other low-level difficulty, several years later, was of course the subsequent PM's decision to scupper the deal without actually telling the French in advance, an episode which is best remembered for French leader Emmanuel Macron's Gallic contempt for our own Scott Morrison. Mr Morrison himself shares his recollections of this tricky encounter this coming Monday on ABC TV, when the final episode of Nemesis goes to air.

Come for the French shade… stay for the truly excruciating.

This week's episode, meanwhile, prompted discussion around the parliament on many issues, not least whether it's okay to fat-shame a male politician. This arose from Mr Turnbull's remark, on being shown footage of his former finance minister Mathias Cormann, that "God, he's put on a lot of weight since 2018".

Cormann wasn't the only person to cop commentary from Turnbull. When asked what word came to mind when he thought of Peter Dutton, Turnbull helpfully offered "thug". Me? A thug? I wouldn't have thought, Peter Dutton said on Tuesday.

Here's some stories arising from that episode, while you wait for Monday's final, gripping instalment:

• Nemesis episode 2: We relived the thrills and spills of the Malcolm Turnbull years — with political analysis from Annabel Crabb
• Turnbull’s old colleagues have laid out in gobsmacking detail how they brought him down
• Senior Liberals asked to describe Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison in one word reveal intriguing theory

The rugby league of nations

You'd wonder if PNG Prime Minister James Marape, who is away from home as a political storm continues to brew, is watching Nemesis while he's in town.

But the building of diplomatic bridges continues, with discussion of an NRL team for the league-mad nation.

Renewed diplomatic ties … fraying

It's one thing to celebrate the restored diplomatic dialogue with Beijing since a couple of years spent in the deep-freeze.

But the differences between our nations was on stark and horrifying display this week with Foreign Minister Penny Wong's confirmation that Australian citizen Yang Hengjun – arrested on "spying" charges – has been sentenced to death.

The sentence is potentially commutable for "good behaviour", but it is chilling news nonetheless.

Closing the Gap

Productivity Commission's first review of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap arrived this week, and it revealed precisely the same lack of significant progress that the government cited as grounds for a change of approach.

Ahead of the release, the PM told 7.30 that his government was now looking at other options, since the defeat of the Voice referendum. That is to say, it's back to status quo.

And the death of an iconic Indigenous leader – Lowitja O'Donoghue – was mourned by the Parliament this week.

Welcome back, Ute Man!

In Question Time on Thursday, the Opposition did not raise any criticism of the government's renovation of the tax system; it would have been awkward, seeing as they're voting yes.

Instead, the Coalition began research work on what the government's next broken promise would be. Negative gearing? Capital gains tax?

And Labor's proposed new fuel efficiency standards – which you will remember Scott Morrison characterising as a vicious assault on the weekend – have flushed out fears for Ute man again…