Interrupting the nation’s morning tea time, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott began by extolling the virtues of the scheme and arguing it should not just be a Labor thing.

‘‘It cannot, should not, must not be a trophy for one or other side of politics,’’ he declared.

But despite the punchy opener and worthy cause in question, the Little Learners outing will not be remembered for its disability reform plea.

A few minutes later, the Opposition Leader was asked about his ‘‘signature’’ policy for paid parental leave. A troublesome Liberal backbencher had been out and about, arguing wild things, like the scheme was ‘‘unaffordable’’.

So what did Abbott have to say about that?

The member for Warringah was undeterred by the backbench rumblings. After all, this is merely the political equivalent of indigestion. Itmight be a bit uncomfortable, but if you ignore it, it will usually go away. So, after insisting he would take his PPL baby to the election, Abbott launched into a passionate defence of why his generous policy was required.

‘‘We do not educate women to higher degree level to deny them a career,’’ he said. ‘‘If we want women of that calibre to have families, and we should, we have got to give them a fair dinkum chance to do so.’’

Australia winced. Not only had Abbott used the term ‘‘fair dinkum’’ again (could we have a moratorium on that please?), he described women in terms of their calibre!

In the US, such a comment may have been easily dismissed as a gun thing. But there was no such luck for the Opposition Leader. No sooner had Abbott spoken the word than people were running to the top of the tower to ring the misogyny bell.

Health Minister Tanya Plibersek said the comments were an ‘‘insight into his values: his lack of respect for low-income workers, and women in particular’’.

Finance Minister Penny Wong also signalled her disapproval, as did feminists Anne Summers and Jenna Price. The hashtag ‘‘womenofcalibre’’ took off on Twitter, irony light flashing.

To be fair, feminist Eva Cox weighed in to deem it all an overreaction, but the idea still stuck that Abbott had committed another faux pas, that he had somehow revealed his ‘‘true’’ attitude towards women and it wasn’t pretty.

But is this fair (dinkum)? When you look at the substance of the policy Abbott was talking about and the rest of the comments he made at Little Learners, they were pro-women and their general advancement in life. And not in a 1950s, women should have the most up-to-date vacuum cleaner kind of way.

Whatever criticisms there are about the economics of the Coalition’s policy, it is patently better for women than Labor’s deal.

The Coalition is offering women their full replacement wage, plus superannuation, for six months, up to a maximum salary of $150,000 a year. Labor’s policy, which began in 2011, offers 18 weeks at the minimum wage. This adds up to about $11,000.

Abbott’s argument that paid parental leave is a workplace reform, not a welfare one, is also a new take on an old problem.

‘‘If a bloke takes leave because he is sick, he should be paid at his wage. Ifa woman takes leave because she is having a baby, she should be paid at her wage. So, this is a question of wage justice,’’ he said on Tuesday.

‘‘Younger women are in the prime of life and they should be able not just to have kids but to have careers.’’

There’s little doubt that Abbott could have chosen a less clumsy form of words than ‘‘of that calibre’’. But in saying that women who have degrees should have children, was he really saying that women who do not have degrees should not be encouraged to procreate? Or even that they are less suited to parenthood?

The episode shows how much we view our politicians through the same pair of old spectacles every time, no matter what.

Julia Gillard has never recovered from the way she got rid of Kevin Rudd and the ‘‘there will be no carbon tax’’ affair (i.e. ‘‘you can’t trust anything she says’’). Similarly, Abbott is beholden to long-held perceptions that he has a ‘‘woman problem’’.

Granted, when it comes to the Opposition Leader, one paid parental leave policy does not a feminist revolution make.

But if a fuss of this calibre is going to occur every time he talks about women, it makes you rather exhausted to think of what lies ahead during the election campaign. Or even an Abbott prime ministership.