Australia’s opposition leader, Peter Dutton, withdrew two key election promises on Monday.

The Liberal Party dropped its plan to require public servants to work in offices five days a week, except in exceptional circumstances, and abandoned a proposal to cut over 41,000 federal public sector jobs through forced redundancies.

Instead, job reductions will be achieved through natural attrition and an employment freeze.

Dutton admitted the initial policy was a mistake, emphasizing efficiency in taxpayer spending, the Associated Press has reported.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese criticized the reversal, while the Labor Party raised concerns about the policy’s potential impact on women with child care responsibilities.

Written by B.C. Begley