The retired City of Maribyrnong payroll manager has experienced more than his fair share of politicians.

So much so that Mr Chamberlain, 78, was not surprised by Tony Abbott's decision to jettison some of the key promises that helped him get elected.

"I think all politicians are tarred with the one brush: they all promise the world but they don't realise how much that costs," he said.

But while Mr Chamberlain was not entirely surprised by broken promises such as the decision to cut funding to the ABC he has been far from impressed by Mr Abbott's performance. The Altona Meadows resident said he thought the Prime Minister could have been different, but was becoming undone by his obsession with fixing the budget.

"He thought getting the budget back in one condition was his first priority. But he won't get it back in surplus, it's too far gone," he said.

Mr Chamberlain is not alone in his frustrations. The Prime Minister's disapproval rating sits at 57 per cent nationally, up 8 points in the past month alone. Compounding the problem, Mr Chamberlain said, was the media's penchant for making the Liberal party's problems more dramatic than they really are.

New Premier Daniel Andrews campaigned strongly on the basis of the Prime Minister's lack of appeal in Victoria and while Mr Abbott is in trouble nationally with an approval rating of 38 per cent, the situation in Victoria is even more parlous at 36 per cent. Considering the effectiveness of the Victorian Labor party's use of Tony Abbott's image in its anti-Liberal campaigning, he said he was not confident that Mr Abbott would avoid the ignominy of being a single term Prime Minister.

"The way Victoria went, it would be on the cards to be a one term," he said.

That's not to say Mr Abbott cannot turn his fortunes around, according to Mr Chamberlain, who believes the Prime Minister must change course and not be "so dogmatic".

"He should bend a little and see which way the wind's blowing. People aren't happy with what he's throwing out," he said.

Despite questions over Joe Hockey's position, and the ever-circling Malcolm Turnbull in the background as a potential leader, Mr Chamberlain thinks Mr Abbott's job is secure.

"I think he might survive... I think he's trying to do a good job," he said.

High on Mr Chamberlain's priority list is the state of unemployment in the nation.

"I've finished in the workforce now, but I'm worried about the younger people... I don't like the look of the future, there are lots of places closing down, and more we don't even know about," he said.