Put simply, it means taking back what you gave.

It's a lesson that goes to the core of one's moral worth: not going back on one's word, a promise is a promise simple, basic stuff.

Such early life lessons are there for a reason. It defines the social order in the playground. The bullies, the cheats, the liars, the good eggs, the loyal, the honest and so on.

Why, then, do those in certain high places think it is OK to shun these simple social rules? To believe the Australian public won't pay attention?

Since the last election a carbon emissions reduction scheme has been a platform for both the Liberal and Labor parties in varying forms in a bid to address climate change a key issue.

The Coalition promised an emissions trading scheme, so did Labor.

Labor won, the Greens grew stronger and the ETS negotiating began.

In that time we have seen remarkable playground rule-breaking in the Opposition.

After first knocking back the model Labor introduced in Parliament in August (Tony Abbott actually argued that it should be passed in the interests of party unity) the Coalition wanted to negotiate with the Government.

The watered down model, after Coalition amendments, is almost closer to its own original platform than Labor's and indeed, has created some disenchantment with the Rudd Government.

Now the public is expected to accept the Liberal Party never had a commitment to an ETS, it never agreed to pass such legislation after leader Malcolm Turnbull negotiated, and won, on crucial amendments in agriculture and the coal industry, and in fact, the whole premise of climate change being man made is false. Even after a spill motion last week, when Turnbull won the majority of the party room on his position, the climate naysayers have side-stepped a commitment in the Senate by delaying the vote and suggesting the Bill go through committees.

Another broken promise. And extraordinarily, a busload of frontbenchers resign their spots and a strange cat-and-mouse tussle begins, led by Abbott, over who will challenge Malcolm Turnbull (again) for the leadership; a leadership under which the Coalition had pleaded for strength and guidance.

The Liberal Party has blatantly executed backflips, revealed opportunism, broken promises and ultimately Indian giving.