Today's question time was the first since John Key took over the National Party leadership in November last year that he hasn't looked cock-a-hoop.
That's because Labour had so much with which to ridicule, tease and condemn him over: confusion over a transtasman therapeutics agency; his position on Iraq;and his error at the party conference when he talked of leading a Labour Govt.
It is a rather extraordinary position to find himself in after a recess in which a cabinet minister resigned and he held his first conference as party leader.
It is one of those times when there is no use in doing anything other than grinning and bearing it and wait for Labour to get it out of their system.
Annette King [audio clip one] had the most fun, digging out a Dr Seuss book to assist with her taunting on the therapeutics agency. Key, after initialling getting rattled, decided not to react and kept his eyes firmly fixed on scrolling messages on his blackberry.
The next question, however, demonstrated why National's doldrums are likely to be short-lived. Bill English [audio clip 2] asked Justice Minister Mark Burton about the definition of election advertisements in the Electoral Finance Bill, about which I will write more tomorrow. He suggested that the children's lobby group the Littlies Lobby will be captured by the definitions.
This is going to be a rich vein for National. It is a deeply flawed bill, being defended by an ineffective minister against a campaign to be run by National's strongest House performer. Unless Burton is reshuffled out of the job within the next two months, this is going to be like shooting fish in a barrel for them.
