The Premier’s office wishes it could wind back the clock several weeks and have plonked Peter Malinauskas into the thick of it from the very early stages, writes Mike Smithson.

Each day is becoming a tough and potentially costly slog for the state government and there’s little let up in sight.

The Premier and cabinet visited the heartland of our algal bloom problems on Yorke Peninsula this week and the strain was showing.

Peter Malinauskas had stripped down to a pair of skins often worn by joggers with a pair of gym shorts over the top and then rugged up his upper half.

He was about to embark on an oyster boat from Stansbury ramp for a journey just offshore with a group of aquatic farmers eager to tell him everything they knew about the industry and their problems, which are plentiful.

They volunteered to shut down their oyster leases after the first detection of toxins, rather than being forced to.

These hardy souls believe that early goodwill and co-operation will pay off when government decisions are made to lift the bans.

But for almost three months they’ve had no income.

So why was the Premier dressed more for an early morning workout than an inspection tour?

Media cameras were also aboard the relatively small craft for the moment he donned industrial-strength waders and slid over the side.

That was a clear image of him getting down and dirty onto the submerged platforms amongst the giant oyster baskets.

He didn’t need to take the plunge to see the toxic problems which could have easily been explained on deck.

It was also a metaphor for a crucial image........

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