Federal election 2025 as it happened: Treasurer claims second debate a ‘decisive win’ for PM; McKenzie apologises over China, Russia comments

Thank you for joining our live coverage of the 2025 federal election.

This is where we’ll end today’s coverage.

To conclude, here’s a look back at the day’s major stories:

• Independent MP Zoe Daniel says she was unaware of the controversial phone polling undertaken by Climate 200 in her electorate and claimed it was not push polling.
• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese arrived in Brisbane today, where he doubled down on his attack on the Coalition over its climate change policy and said it had “gone backwards” since the Howard era.
• Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton clarified his position on climate change, telling reporters he believed in climate change and that it was a reality.
• Treasurer Jim Chalmers says he is delighted by the latest jobs figures despite a lower than expected rebound in employment last month.
• The Coalition also announced it would spend $260 million to build 12 new technical colleges for students in years 10 to 12 if it wins the election.

We will return next week, with all the latest political developments.

In the meantime, I hope all our readers enjoy the Easter break.

Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles has been on ABC’s 774 in Melbourne, who has been asked whether AUKUS should be cancelled.

He said having a technology sharing agreement with the US and the UK was key, and he disputed that there wasn’t a delivery date in relation to the submarines.

“We need to see this as an alliance, a relationship which transcends a particular administration in Washington, or, for that matter, any particular government in Canberra,” he said of the deal.

“The deep relationship that we have between our defence forces certainly does transcend all of that, but I think the other point to make is that what we’re about is building our own innate capability,” Marles said.

Liberal candidate for Kooyong Amelia Hamer has publicly addressed the controversy over her property portfolio for the first time, defending her decision to rent in Hawthorn while owning investment properties in London and Canberra.

I broke the story last week that Hamer owns two homes – a detail that had been absent from her campaign messaging to date, which promoted her as a renter grappling with the same plight as many Millennials unable to break into the property market or delaying having children due to housing difficulties.

Speaking at a funding announcement for Greythorn Park Pavilion in Balwyn North yesterday, Hamer did not acknowledge omitting her property ownership from the campaign, but pivoted to discussing the difficulties of being a landlord.

Liberal candidate for Kooyong Amelia Hamer on the campaign trail with former premier of Victoria Jeff Kennett.Credit: Instagram

“You can be renting and you can also own a property,” she said. “I’ve spoken to over 10,000 people in this local community, and in those conversations we’ve talked about the struggles of renting that people are telling me about, and the struggles of being a home owner.

“We also talk about the struggles of being a landlord in the state of Victoria at the moment because that is really, really hard. People tell me they’re struggling to continue to rent properties out in this market.”

More on this issue in the ‘hot seats’ blog.

One of two far-right agitators who confronted Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in a Melbourne hotel lobby has previously said people should train “to be able to kill” and posts footage of himself online wielding machineguns and rocket launchers.

The other, who also approached Albanese in a filmed confrontation Tuesday, helped organise massive anti-lockdown protests, which were attended by conspiracy theorists.

Fresh security fears have been raised after two men confronted Albanese at a hotel on the campaign trail, demanding answers over housing and immigration, despite an apparent increase in safety measures for politicians.

Daniel Jones has posted footage of himself online wielding machine guns.

The exchanges were circulated by far-right social media accounts.

Daniel Jones, who has served as a bodyguard to far-right figure Avi Yemini, said on social media yesterday that he walked unchallenged into the hotel lobby before he confronted Albanese and asked him questions about immigration.

Jones, a self-proclaimed self-defence expert, has previously said that people should “train to make it easy to be able to kill”, according to posts unearthed online and seen by The Age.

His company’s social media accounts are littered with videos of Jones trying out powerful weapons and offering his political views.

Learn more here.

Peter Dutton’s campaign hasn’t quite been like a box of chocolates: for the most part, you usually know what you’re going to get.

Hard hats, concrete slabs, and petrol stations have been the recurring theme.

But on the cusp of the Easter long weekend, a sweet treat for the Liberal leader who has visited Luka Chocolates in Wyong in the seat of Dobell, with local candidate Brendan Small and Lucy Wicks, from the neighbouring seat of Robertson.

A special sweet treat for the opposition leader.Credit: James Brickwood

The owner has welcomed a Liberal leader before, she says, Malcolm Turnbull, whose photo is in her office out the back.

And she has a special treat for Mr Dutton: white chocolates emblazoned with the Liberal logo.

“Ah, these taste great!” Mr Dutton says, although he resists a taste.

But next he packs up a box for his staff, quizzing them on the flavours they’d like.

He then turns server, $115.50 for the lot. Wicks has queued up to pay, but Dutton steps in to foot the bill.

Peter Dutton hands over chocolate he bought to his wife, Kirilly.Credit: James Brickwood

Then a customer comes up to the counter, buying a Rocky Road.

Dutton jokes she might offer a tip, and for a moment she seems quite insistent to give him one, but he won’t accept it.

The cost of cocoa is hitting hard, we are told, and the cost of electricity to run various cool rooms.

The business has resorted to cheaper offerings to entice the kids, the owner offers.

Then it’s time for a serious message from Dutton, who wishes Australians a happy and holy Easter, but also a safe one, urging young drivers in particular to adhere to the road rules and be careful in the wet.

An Easter chocolate selection.Credit: James Brickwood

Tony Pasin, the opposition roads minister, is there to announce a trial for a no-fault accident investigation system.

It’s among the last engagements we expect from the Liberal leader, whose wife Kirilly has been with him today, before a quieter Easter period for the campaign.

It’s one long weekend that will be followed by another, with early voting starting in between.

Dutton’s “aspirational” pledge to index personal income tax brackets in the future has been the talk of the town today.

In an interview with The Australian, Dutton said he would index personal tax in the future when the budget was healthy enough.

His comments drew the attention of Treasurer Jim Chalmers, who said the idea should have Dutton “laughed off the stage”.

During his own press conference this afternoon, the opposition leader was asked whether he could anticipate the budget could afford the change.

Dutton didn’t provide any details, instead taking a jab at the prime minister.

“First of all, if I fell off the stage, I wouldn’t lie about it,” he said, referring to Albanese slipping off a stage earlier in the campaign, but saying he hadn’t fallen.

Dutton then went on to discuss the benefits Australians would receive from his plan to cut the fuel excise.

Speaking at a press conference at Penrith Stadium this morning, NSW Premier Chris Minns was asked whether the state premiers would work together to oppose nuclear energy plans if a Dutton government is elected.

“Voters are going to have to make up their own minds in a couple of weeks, and it’s not up for me to put the cart before the horse about who’s going to win, we’ll know soon enough,” he said.

NSW Premier Chris Minns during a visit to Paddy’s Markets in Sydney on April 9, 2025.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Minns urged Australians who were concerned about nuclear energy to vote for an Albanese government.

“I can’t speak for the other premiers. What I would say is that the best guarantee you can have if you’re opposed to that kind of energy source is to not vote for that party,” he said.

“Ultimately, one party has decided they’re going to go ahead with it and one hasn’t, so if that’s the number one concern, exercise your vote judicially.”

Heading west now, where a stoush is brewing between a high-profile Nationals hopeful and the rest of her Coalition team over Labor’s production tax credits for critical minerals and hydrogen.

Earlier this week, Nationals Bullwinkel candidate Mia Davies spoke out in support of the $13.7 billion worth of incentives to bring downstream processing of critical minerals and hydrogen to the country, which she said was a sensible policy that had support of the WA mining industry.

Mia Davies outside Parliament House in WA last year.Credit: Hamish Hastie

Shadow treasurer Angus Taylor was in Perth this morning and shot down Davies’ call. He said supporting the resources sector was about getting the basics right.

“I saw that massive wave of investment starting in the mid-2000s here in WA when I was working over here ... I saw how that benefited this state. I saw it work,” he said.

“I tell you, it wasn’t because the government was giving those companies subsidies, it was because the basics were right.”

Read more here.

It’s the 11th petrol station here in the Hunter region and punters are looking quite perplexed. The opposition leader visited a 7-11 outlet in Metford.

Dutton came in and filled up Liberal candidate Laurence Antcliff’s truck.

Dutton fills up.Credit: James Brickwood

The opposition leader went inside and bought a six-pack of doughnuts, calling out, “Now, who’s my favourite photographer,” to chuckles from the press pack.

He quickly said hello to what appeared to be a punter. However, they had a Liberal T-shirt hanging up in their car.

A quick photo was taken with the man and his two kids before everyone drove off.

Circling back to Dutton, who said his government would cut migrant numbers by 100,000 people each year.

At his press conference earlier today, the opposition leader was asked whether migrants coming to work in Australia’s aged care sector would be exempt from the cuts.

Peter Dutton.Credit: James Brickwood

Dutton ducked the question, but said that when he came into opposition, he told the prime minister the Coalition would “support sensible reforms that the government has to put forward”.

“… I want people who have worked hard all of their life in our country to lead a dignified life as they retire,” he said.

The opposition leader also wouldn’t say whether he’d make changes to NDIS eligibility requirements.

“I sat down with the prime minister and said that we would support sensible changes to the NDIS,” he said.

“I’m not having people with disability ripped off, and I’m not having Australian taxpayers ripped off because of mistakes the Labor Party made.”