Australian Election 2025: Albanese, Dutton campaigning on Day 12
The Prime Minister has slammed ‘cookers’ running for election on May 3, after LNP volunteers handed out MAGA hats to constituents.
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Anthony Albanese has called on voters in Far North Queensland to throw their support behind a “mainstream” candidate, after Liberal National Party volunteers staged a MAGA-style campaign launch in a prized seat.
Speaking from Cairns, Prime Minister Anthony described outgoing Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch as “hard-working”, but had much stronger words for his chosen successor, candidate Jeremy Neal.
“This guy here is a shocker, and people shouldn’t vote for him,” Mr Albanese said referring to Mr Neal.
“You know, we need mainstream candidates.
“This bloke here will be a mainstream candidate for the Labor Party, and people of this electorate should vote for Matt Smith,” he added, referring to Labor’s candidate.
Mr Neal has drawn backlash after volunteers reportedly handed out red MAGA-style hats at his campaign launch, which read “MAGA Make Albo Go Away”.
He also apologised on Tuesday for comments made in since-deleted posts about Covid restrictions, feminists allegedly being responsible for Trump’s 2020 election loss, and called China a “grub of a country”.
Mr Neal was not the only one handing out the hats, with the LNP MP for Lockyer, Jim McDonald, posing up on Instagram in a green MAGA Make Albo Go Away hat and thanking a consituent for the gift.
Mr Albanese said he wanted to see more tourists from China to Cairns, and criticised Mr Neal for his comments about defunding the ABC given its role in assisting communities during the recent storm events.
“I mean, you know, there’s been talk today about gas from Peter Dutton,” Mr Albanese said.
“If he wants to find cookers, he can just look at his party room, because it’s full of (them).”
Dutton: Bandt and Albo are ‘blood brothers’
In another interview on Wednesday evening, this time on Sky with Chris Kenny, Mr Dutton doubled down on his messaging warning voters against a Greens and Labor Coalition.
The inference is that if the May 3 election results in a hung parliament, Labor will need to the support of the minor party to gain confidence and supply and pass legislation, even though Mr Albanese has ruled out making deals with the Greens.
However the Coalition have capitalised on the idea.
“Their blood brothers, Anthony Albanese and Adam Bandt are joined at the hip, only their mothers can tell them apart,” he told Sky in a pre-recorded interview.
”I just think this is a huge problem… this is a lie by the prime minister.
“The Prime Minister will jump into bed with the Greens after the election if it means that that’s what he has to do to get into government.”
Mr Dutton continued his exuberant attack on the unholy alliance, and said Mr Albanese had “this much difference” in shared ideology and philosphy with Greens Leader Adam Bandt.
“He masks it well, but I promise you, in a second term, he’d be bolshie and very keen to do whatever he could to get the support of the Greens.”
Labor’s $130k move on Dutton in text to voters
The Australian Labor Party will increase its advertising spend in the marginal Queensland seat of Dickson, held by the Opposition Leader, in a bid to “dump Dutton for good”.
In a spam text sent to thousands of voters seeking donations on Wednesday, the party said new research had revealed Peter Dutton was at risk of losing his seat.
“We just greenlit $130k in extra ad spend, but we need grassroots support to close the gap,” the text read.
“Can you help us do something massive and dump Dutton from Dickson?”
While most of Labor’s advertisement texts are centred around Mr Dutton as leader of the Coalition, none have directly targeted his seat.
Mr Dutton holds the seat of Dickson – the most marginal federal seat in Queensland, by only 3,363 votes after preferences. He was first elected in 2001, and enjoyed a healthy margin until 2007, when he took the seat by only 217 votes.
Labor did not elaborate in the ad, or in the donation link, on what the new research was or the specifics of the findings.
Dutton won’t put exact figure on gas savings
Asked on ABC Sydney on Wednesday afternoon exactly how much households would be able to save through the Coalition’s gas policy, Mr Dutton said he could not say but the decision would have an “economy-wide benefit”.
“The reason you can’t quantify the exact dollar is that there is that economy wide benefit to this gas policy,” he said.
”It brings down the price of gas that you pay at home. But gas is used in the production of electricity, so the benefit in relation to electricity is also huge.”
He compared the cost savings to the Coalition’s other key cost-of-living policy: the 25c per litre reduction of the fuel excise, which on average is claimed to save households about $750 per car over the year.
“It’s not just when you go to fill your car up, or (when) your partner does, or your kids do,” he said.
“There’s a benefit for your family, but the fuel cut means that the delivery truck driver, the farmer, the tradie, whoever it might be, right across the economy, pensioners, they all benefit from this cut as well.”
Extension to fuel excise cut not ruled out
Mr Dutton was also asked again if the Coalition would extend the fuel excise cut.
The petrol promise has become a star policy for the Opposition, with Mr Dutton visiting a string of fuel stations, five in five days, to promote the policy.
Mr Dutton said if the Colaition wins government, they’ll implement the excise cut for 12 months to “help people now” and then “assess where the economy is and where people are with their budgets at the end of that”.
He compared it to the Coalition’s Covid-era policies which provided assistance to families, households and business and were then assessed depending on need and the “economic circumstances”.
“If you lock it in at the cost of $6bn a year, it then blows out over the forward estimates to obviously about $24bn,” he told the ABC.
Chalmers’ crisis talks continue
Treasurer Jim Chalmers spent a second day locked in crisis talks with financial bosses in the wake of the destructive Trump tariffs.
On Wednesday, he convened a meeting of the Council of Financial Regulators to discuss the global and domestic economic outlook.
Attendees included RBA Governor Michele Bullock, ASIC Chair Joe Longo, APRA Chair John Lonsdale, Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy, and ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb.
On Tuesday, he met with the heads of ANZ, CBA, NAB and Westpac, as well as Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock, ASFA CEO Mary Delahunty and Super Members Council of Australia CEO Misha Schubert.
On Thursday he is expected to meet with the major employers comprising the Board of the Business Council of Australia.
‘Never negotiate’: Albo’s response to Trump’s new tariff
Anthony Albanese has vowed to “never negotiate” on the future of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on imported medicines.
“There is news from the United States that President Trump has made some comments about pharmaceuticals being subject to tariffs,” the Prime Minister said from Cairns on Wednesday.
“I make this point unequivocally. Australia will stand up for our pharmaceutical benefits scheme.
“Our Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is an essential part of who we are. We will never negotiate on it. We will never undermine it.”
Mr Albanese said Labor had insisted on the PBS being a condition on free trade agreements signed with the United States.
“It is still Australia’s position, and it always will be Australia’s position while I’m Prime Minister,” he said.
On Wednesday, the Republican president said “we’re going to tariff our pharmaceuticals”, Reuters reported.
“Once we do that, they’re going to come rushing back into out country because we’re the big market,” he said, describing how other countries – including Australia, capped drug prices.
“They will leave China, they will leave other places
The Prime Minister also confirmed he had spoken with Peter Dutton after his father was rushed to hospital hours before the first leaders debate on Tuesday night.
Mr Albanese said he spoke with the Opposition Leader prior to the debate and had a “private discussion”.
“Our health and the health of our family members always comes first,” the Prime Minister said.
‘This year’: Dutton’s big call on bill drop
Peter Dutton says the Coalition’s gas reservation policy would result in a drop in household and business energy bills by the end of the calendar year.
The opposition released the modelling from Frontier Economics on the savings from its policy on Tuesday night, in the midst of the leaders’ debate.
Campaigning in Energy Minister Chris Bowen’s Sydney seat of McMahon on Wednesday, Mr Dutton promised household gas and electricity prices would drop 7 per cent and 3 per cent respectively.
Under these figures the average quarterly Sydney household gas bill ($176) would be reduced by $12.32, and the average quarterly electricity bill ($504) will be cut by about $15.11.
When asked, when people would see the reduction, Mr Dutton told reporters: “We have said by the end of this calendar year.”
To achieve the savings, the Coalition will call on gas companies to boost gas production, and then pass legislation to decouple domestic prices with more competitive international prices, and thus reducing the incentive for companies to sell their product overseas.
“Now, some of the big gas companies aren’t happy, but I’m fighting for families and I’m fighting for small businesses and for bigger manufacturing businesses so that we can bring costs down across the economy,” he said.
However, Mr Dutton couldn’t say whether households would feel the full impact of the 6 per cent cut in gas bills and 3 per cent in electricity bills promised by the modelling.
“It depends on when people are contracted and what their individual arrangements are but across the economy, we reduce the cost of gas, and we start negotiations with the companies from day one,” he said.
“And what we’re doing is we’re saying that we want to address the structural problem, the real foundational problem that’s in the economy at the moment.”
Albo turns focus to key Cairns seat
Anthony Albanese has touched down in Cairns this afternoon after two days in Sydney, where he is expected to spruik a $245m pledge for a new bridge in a marginal Far North Queensland electorate.
Leichhardt Labor hopeful Matt Smith is taking on LNP candidate Jeremy Neal, who has been tasked with holding the seat after Liberal MP Warren Entsch decided to retire after serving in the seat for a whopping total of 26 years over two periods.
Mr Neal’s campaign has received criticism for drawing on imagery akin to Donald Trump’s MAGA movement, including hats reading “MAGA – Make Albo Go Away”, according to Sky News.
He has also reportedly offered controversial opinions on Covid restrictions, feminists allegedly being responsible for Trump’s 2020 election loss, and called China a “grub of a country”.
He apologised for the since deleted posts on Tuesday.
“I share Peter Dutton’s concerns over President Trump’s tariffs, particularly the impact they will have on our local beef industry,” he told the Courier Mail.
“The posts in question, which have long been deleted, were poorly worded and I unreservedly apologise for them.
“The majority of these were posted in the midst of the Covid pandemic when I was working on the frontline as a paramedic, attending some extremely traumatic incidents in my community.
“These experiences had a profound impact on me at the time.”
Dutton denies migration stance will hurt him in Western Sydney
Peter Dutton said his migration stance was addressing the concerns of affordable housing.
Asked whether his strong clamp down on migration would affect the multicultural communities of Western Sydney, Mr Dutton said “the opposite is the case”.
He said young migrant families had expressed concern about being able to afford housing.
“They’re desperately worried about whether their kids can find a house and they’re worried in their own circumstances, being locked out of housing,” he said.
“Under Mr Albanese, rents have gone up by 18 per cent.
“It doesn’t matter whether you come from a young Indian family or young Chinese family, or you’ve been here for generations … you’re worried desperately under Labor because they’ve created a housing crisis.
“That’s what Australians are feeling.”
Albo hits back at Aussie recession talk
Anthony Albanese says he believes Australia will avoid a recession despite the havoc being wreaked globally by the Trump tariffs, as he again defended his government’s response.
The ASX followed international share markets, slumping again on Wednesday, after President Donald Trump raised the tariffs on China exports to the US to 104 per cent overnight.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton on Tuesday said a recession was likely “under Labor”, something the Prime Minister dismissed saying he agreed with leading economist Warwick McKibbin that Australia would avoid recession.
Mr Albanese says Australia is continuing to engage with the US after copping the lowest tariff rate of 10 per cent on Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” last week.
“We have constant engagement with the US administration,” he told reporters during a campaign stop at Sydney’s Paddy’s market.
He said the US was not the only market for Australia.
“Donald Trump’s tariffs represent an impact on the world because the US is the world’s largest economy, but 80 per cent of world trade does not involve the United States,” Mr Albanese said.
“There’s enormous opportunities for Australia to take advantage of where we are in the world, in ASEAN, building on the work we’ve done, building up trade relationships through Nicholas Moore’s report about South-East Asia.
“Building our relationship with India. Continuing to build on our economic relationship with China, a relationship that we have repaired since we’ve been in government.”
PM’s olive oil jab at Paddy’s opening
Anthony Albanese has jokingly scolded the sale of an imported olive oil and recounted stories of his youth while touring Sydney’s famous Paddy’s market on Wednesday.
The PM exclaimed “what is this?” after coming upon the $20 La Espanola olive oil while weaving through food stalls with Sydney MP Tanya Plibersek and Paul Signorelli, whose family is a stalwart of the almost 200-year-old marketplace in Haymarket.
Mr Albanese was joined in opening the new artisanal marketplace by NSW Premier Chris Minns, NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman and Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, which was replete with a traditional Chinese dance and copious food.
The PM also used the event to recount his own experience as a younger person at the market.
“This is a part of my upbringing and one of my fondest memories is seeing a band here … one of the first Sydney festivals to see this new band,” he said
“They did OK, they were called AC/DC. It was a free concert. This is how people in Sydney relate to this wonderful piece of real estate.”
The PM has been pushing the consumption of Australian-made products, in particular since the announcement of a 10 per cent tariff on Aussie goods by US President Donald Trump last week.
‘Lifespan of curdled yoghurt’: Dutton WFH backflip ridiculed
Anthony Albanese has refused to say whether he thinks NSW Premier Chris Minns’ plan to get public servants back into the office is “out of touch”, amid claims Peter Dutton copied the plan in his now-defunct public service overhaul.
The Premier last year ordered public servants back into the office, unless they had written permission for a hybrid model.
That runs up against the PM’s rhetoric throughout the election campaign, which has pitched Mr Dutton as being the one out of touch with working families due to his insistence on scrapping work from home for public servants.
The Opposition Leader has since backflipped on the unpopular plan, instead saying the changes would only affect Canberra-based bureaucrats and that dramatic cuts to the APS would not be done through forced redundancies.
Appearing besides the PM on Wednesday, the Premier said he was “not going to pretend … that our policy is exactly the same as the Commonwealth government’s”.
“What I would argue is the workplaces are very different,” Mr Minns said.
The Premier said 85 per cent of the public service in NSW were frontline workers.
“You know where I stand, you know where the PM stands,” he said.
“Got no idea where Peter Dutton is, and what used to be a fundamental part of his election pitch. One day he’s for it, the next day, he’s against it.
“I think at the end of the day, voters are going to say to themselves, how can we trust this bloke if his policies have got the lifespan of curdled yoghurt.”
Dutton’s second visit to senior minister’s seat
Brushing off the debate defeat, the Dutton camp has hit the hustings in the Western Sydney electorate of McMahon, held by Energy Minister Chris Bowen.
While the seat sits in a margin of 10.5 per cent, safely Labor, this is the second time Mr Dutton has visited the seat during the campaign.
The Coalition’s energy spokesman Ted O’Brien and Western Sydney spokeswoman Mel McIntosh are appearing alongside Mr Dutton after the Opposition realised modelling showing its gas policy would lower household gas bills by 7 per cent, and electricity bills by 3 per cent.
‘Dodgy’: Labor bags Coalition gas modelling
A gas user with an average quarterly bill of $200 would save an estimated seven per cent – $14 a quarter or $56 a year – under the plan, while industrial customers will pay 15 per cent less on gas.
Residential electricity prices would drop by 3 per cent.
Labor campaign spokesman Jason Clare has described the policy as “snake oil”.
“It’s snake oil. This is as dodgy as all their other policies,” he told ABC News Breakfast.
“I think it’s just 125 words worth of assumptions.
“Let’s call this what this is – it’s a distraction from their nuclear reactor policy, which is about as popular as root canal.”
Housing Minister Clare O’Neil joined the pile on.
“It’s less a gas policy and more gaslighting for the Australian people,” Ms O’Neil told Seven’s Sunrise program.
Opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume, who was also on the program, said the policy would add more gas to the domestic market.
“That’s where this east coast gas reserve will come from, bringing more gas into the system. It will unlock supply and bring prices down over time,” she said.
‘Day one’: Coalition’s plan for gas
Coalition energy spokesman Ted O’Brien said a Dutton government would introduce legislation to implement its gas energy plan on the first day of the new parliament.
The policy will impose a gas security charge to force gas exporters to divert enough gas to inject up to 100 petajoules of supply into the domestic market that would otherwise be headed overseas.
Mr O’Brien was asked on ABC RN Breakfast how long it would take from the legislation passing to getting the scheme up and running.
“We’ll be introducing legislation on day one to get energy prices down,” he said.
“As soon as that starts being operational, within the first 12 month period, you will see wholesale gas prices coming down now.”
He said households would start feeling the reductions of 7 per cent on gas bills and 3 per cent on electricity bills on ABC’s RN Breakfast.
“We should be seeing after 12 months of operation be seeing an impact in bills, whether that be households, whether that be industry but again … it depends on the contracts.”
On campaign trail after debate
Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton will return to the road on Wednesday, after facing off in the first leaders debate of the election campaign for the May 3 election.
The 100 undecided voters in the audience of the Sky News/Daily Telegraph People’s Forum in Western Sydney on Tuesday night gave the Prime Minister the win with 44 votes, while the Opposition Leader picked up 35. Notably 21 voters were undecided.
Mr Dutton went into the debate just after being told his 80-year-old father Bruce had had a heart attack, which was not revealed to the audience.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers and shadow treasurer Angus Taylor will debate economic policy in a head-to-head on Sky News at 7.30pm on Wednesday.
Mr Albanese will make a stop in Sydney’s Paddy’s market alongside NSW Premier Chris Minns on Wednesday morning before heading to Cairns in Far North Queensland, where Labor is hoping to pick up the LNP seat of Leichhardt held by Warren Entsch who is retiring.
Details of the Liberal campaign are still unknown, but the modelling to increase the supply of gas domestically and reduce energy costs will likely dominate the morning.
The Coalition released the highly-anticipated modelling from Frontier Economics, in the middle of the debate on Tuesday night.
Albo to face Minns after WFH grilling
Anthony Albanese will travel to the famous Paddy’s market in Sydney’s CBD on Wednesday with Premier Chris Minns, hours after copping questions about why he opposed an end to work from home mandates which the NSW leader backs.
The Prime Minister was grilled during the first leaders debate on Tuesday night about his criticism of Peter Dutton’s now-aborted attempt to scuttle work from home for the public service, citing that it suited modern families juggling duel incomes and children at home.
The Premier has himself backed an end to work from home mandates in the public service, saying it gave workers a “shared sense of direction”.
Last year he ordered public servants back into the office unless they had written permission for a hybrid model.
Dating back to 1834, Paddy’s market is an iconic of Sydney’s commercial markets, with reams of stores selling cheap wares to tourists in the heart of Haymarket, close to the city’s Chinatown district.
Mr Albanese will join Mr Minns and Sydney MP Tanya Plibersek.
More to come
Originally published as Australian Election 2025: Albanese, Dutton campaigning on Day 12
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