Election 2022: Scott Morrison lashes out over RBA rate hike question

Scott Morrison has angrily batted away questions from reporters, accusing them of politicising a crucial question that could decide the election.

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May 2, 2022 - 11:55AM

Morrison lashes Labor’s housing policy: ‘They want the government to own your home’

Welcome to week four of the federal election campaign, with less than 20 days until Aussies head to the polls on May 21.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison is running out of time to secure another election miracle. According to the latest Newspoll, Labor maintains its two-party preferred lead over the Coalition of 53-47.

Housing affordability has emerged as a key theme this week, with Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese announcing a policy for the government to take an equity stake of up to 40 per cent in a property to make it easier to buy a home.

All eyes are now on the Reserve Bank, which is widely expected to raise the official cash rate at its meeting on Tuesday.

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Reserve Bank rate hike 'not about politics'

Frank Chung

Scott Morrison has hit out at reporters over repeated questions about tomorrow's likely Reserve Bank cash rate increase.

The Prime Minister was asked several times about the political implications of a rare election rate hike, including whether he would take personal responsibility for the "financial pain" of "hundreds of thousands of Australians" who may go into mortgage stress.

Mr Morrison bristled at the question, demanding the reporter "explain to me the numbers". "What are these reports?" he said.

He then pointed out that when he became PM, the official cash rate was 1.5 per cent, compared with the current record low of 0.1 per cent – and that a rapid shift towards fixed mortgages showed "Australians know what is going on" and were anticipating rate rises.

"They know there are pressures that are coming from outside of Australia on interest rates," he said.

"I mean, 0.1 has been an historically unconventionally low rate and it has been there since November of 2020. So these rates are very low, and Australians know that there is pressure on at these rates and they know that over time, how we manage the economy, how we manage the government's finances will impact, potentially, and what happens to rates, and they could go higher than they might otherwise go."

Asked again whether a Tuesday rate rise would hurt the Coalition's chances at the polls, the PM appeared to get emotional.

"You know what, it is not about politics," he said.

"It is not about politics. What happens tomorrow deals with what people pay on their mortgages. That is what I am concerned about. It is not about what it means for politics. I mean, sometimes you guys always see things through a totally political lens. I don't, and Australians don't.

"Australians are focused on what they are paying for and who they think is going to be best able to manage an economy and manage the finances so they are in the best possible position to realise their aspirations.

"Australians know that there are pressures on interest rates. That is why so many of them have been switching to fixed rates. That is why many of them have been trying to get ahead of their mortgages to ensure they are protected. And we have help them do that so they can be in that position because they understand there are many pressures on our economy."

'Taking a cut': PM rips Labor home buying plan

Frank Chung

Scott Morrison has rubbished Labor's proposed housing affordability scheme, saying Australians "don't want the government to own their home".

Speaking to reporters in Geelong on Monday, the Prime Minister said Labor's policy would put owners third in line behind the bank and the government.

"The bank has the first call over it, the government has the second call over it, and you come last when it comes to your own home," he said.

Mr Morrison also rejected Labor's suggestion that he had once supported a similar scheme. "I had no plan for the government to own people's homes," he said.

"Shared equity schemes have been around for a long time and some people choose to do them in the private sector. During the global financial crisis there was a squeeze and there was a focus on Bendigo Bank because of the lack of liquidity in the debt market … So, that was a very different set of issues."

He said the take-up of similar schemes in WA and South Australia had been "very limited and one of the reasons for that is people want to own their own home".

"They don't want the government to own their home. If people want to go into a shared equity mortgage, those products have been around for a long time," he said.

"In terms of the federal government effectively becoming an owner of your home, there are questions about this. What happens if you decide to renovate your home? I mean, what Labor have been very clear about is that they have a share in your home, and so, as your home value increases, they are making money off you.

"As your home value goes up, they are taking a cut, and so you have to pay the government back on their equity and with the capital appreciation. I mean, they are basically riding on your decision to buy your own home.

"It is for 10,000 people, and so you will be going along to an auction, and there will be someone who is bidding against you, and they will be bidding with the government and you will be bidding on your own.

"So, I don't think Labor have thought these things through."

Reason for Albo's Seven snub revealed

Frank Chung

Anthony Albanese will appear on a special edition of the ABC's QandA on Thursday, the broadcaster has announced.

It's apparently the prior "longstanding" commitment the Labor leader referred to last week in a grilling by Sunrise hosts David Koch and Natalie Barr over the timing of the remaining televised leaders' debates with Scott Morrison.

The Prime Minister had suggested a debate on Seven this Thursday night, and criticised Mr Albanese for not agreeing to his request – prompting the hosts to question what he had on that was more important.

"Look, Scott Morrison has been trying to say, 'I'll decide when every debate will be,'" Mr Albanese said. "I've given a range of dates to Channel Seven in which I'm available."

Once the ABC's flagship political talk show, QandA has seem plummeting ratings in recent years and now regularly fails to crack the top 20 programs of the night.

It fell to a record low of just 175,000 viewers recently, a week after host Stan Grant controversially kicked out a pro-Russian audience member.

If you'd like to join the audience for Thursday's #QandA with Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, register via the website now: https://t.co/hdvdP5FBvY pic.twitter.com/EeyXTPXiEx
— QandA (@QandA) May 2, 2022

Embarrassing detail in Russell Crowe Labor ad

Frank Chung

Gladiator star Russell Crowe has thrown his support behind Anthony Albanese by voicing a Labor campaign ad played at the party's campaign launch on Sunday.

"We can do better," Crowe says in the voiceover. "All it takes is a better government with better plans."

But eagle-eyed viewers quickly noticed that the minute-long clip features stock footage purchased online and filmed overseas, including in the US, Canada and Slovenia.

The footage of the elderly woman is from a videographer based in the US and is available on Shutterstock under the title "Portrait of an old lonely human who looks out the window from the window sheds light".

The clip of a man in a wheelchair can be found on the website Pond5 under "Old Man In Wheel Chair At Retirement Home", and was flimed by a videographer based in Canada.

Also apparently purchased from Pond5 were two clips of wheat fields, "A Medium Stabilized Shot Of An Older Farmer Walking Down The Wheat Fields" and "A Close-Up Shot Of An Older Man's Hand Touching Grains Of Wheat", both from a videographer in Slovenia.

Labor has brought in the star power of actor Russell Crowe to voice a new campaign advert, which features stock footage from Canada and Slovenia. @jekearsley #AusVotes #9News pic.twitter.com/IMQkFtKJux
— 9News Australia (@9NewsAUS) May 1, 2022

Labour Day rally goes mental for Albo

Ben Graham

Hundreds were chanting Anthony Albanese's name in unison after a speech he gave at the Labour Day rally in Brisbane.

Appearing on stage at the city's showgrounds following a march through the city, he went over many of the points he's been stressing since the beginning of the campaign.

He gave a special shout-out to care home workers who he said had been some of the worst hit workers by the "cost of living crisis" and the pandemic.

He wrapped up by saying this.

"Friends, we have just 19 days to determine whether we're actually moving forward with a plan for a better future," he said.

"Not just addressing the cost of living and making more things. We're addressing the challenge of climate change for the opportunity that it is to create jobs here in Australia and acting in the interests of working people, whether it's making secure work an objective, whether it's making gender equity an objective.

"No pressure folks, but I'm relying on you, Brisbane, to bring this home. Because I know that you know how important this election is not just for your future, but the future of your kids and the future of this country.

"Together we will give Australia a future. Thanks very much. Happy Labour Day."

Health expert slams both parties for ignoring Covid

Frank Chung

A public health expert has slammed both sides of politics for ignoring the issue of Covid during the election campaign.

Professor Terry Slevin from the Public Health Association of Australia told 3AW neither party was talking about how they would cope with the virus going forward or how they would plan for future pandemics.

"All the experts are saying this will be far from the last pandemic we have to deal with – it's a question of when, not if," he told host Neil Mitchell.

"The discussion about putting sensible planning in place to deal with finishing this one and dealing with future public health crises just hasn’t happened."

Prof Slevin said Australia was fifth in the world for new Covid cases in the past 28 days, which "in the context of our population of 25 million" was "pretty extraordinary".

"The fire is still raging and we're not even thinking about it," he said. "The harsh reality is we have to talk about it because it's still around and there's more to come."

Alan Jones returns to screens tonight

Frank Chung

Broadcaster Alan Jones makes his return to screens at 8pm tonight, with Pauline Hanson and Josh Frydenberg to appear on his streaming show.

The former Sky News host announced his new online show in December but was forced to take several months off following back surgery after only a handful of episodes.

'Absolute disgrace': China activist slams NSW Police

Ben Graham

Political activist and Queensland Senate hopeful Drew Pavlou has accused NSW Police of "doing the work of the Chinese government".

Mr Pavlou was caught up in a nasty scuffle in Sydney's Eastwood on the weekend after he held a sign saying "F**k Xi Jinping", sparking a furious reaction from people he labelled "Chinese ultra-nationalists".

The 20-year-old told 2GB this morning he was expecting to be charged by police, despite being the victim of "assault".

Speaking to news.com.au on the sidelines of the Labour Day March in Brisbane, Mr Pavlou said it was "an absolute disgrace".

"It's an absolute disgrace that we're not allowed to criticize Xi Jinping in our own country," he said.

"I mean, how can the NSW Police Force try and charge me when I was the one who was attacked. Inciting my own attack? I mean, it's ridiculous. They're doing the work of the Chinese government for them."

Albo leading the charge in Brisbane #auspoI pic.twitter.com/f9jzQreamc
— Ben Graham (@bengrahamjourno) May 2, 2022

Please watch this footage – Chinese ultra nationalists hurling racial slurs at our Taiwanese friends today while campaigning in Bennelong in Sydney – “rotten banana” meaning “yellow on outside white on inside” a disgusting ethno nationalist slur pic.twitter.com/orsiyacW2U
— Drew Pavlou For Senate (@DrewPavlou) April 30, 2022

Will Labor's housing policy drive up prices?

Frank Chung

Anthony Albanese has not been able to guarantee that Labor's housing affordability policy will not drive up property prices.

Labor's scheme announced on Sunday would see the government take an equity stake of up to 40 per cent in some 10,000 homes for low-income Australians.

"What work has the Labor Party done to ascertain whether or not your housing affordability initiative will drive up housing prices? And can you give a guarantee standing here today that it will not?" the Labor leader was asked at a press conference in Queensland.

"Our housing policy is good policy," Mr Albanese said.

"How do we know that? Because we know that it works. In Western Australia they've had a similar plan now for 30 years. What it's done is enabled people to get into housing who wouldn't otherwise get there and it's also produced a return to the government.

"It is a very, very positive plan which is why it's been welcomed by the Housing Industry Association, by the Master Builders Association, and it's why as well I note that in the past Scott Morrison has been positive about it."

Jason Clare quizzed about 'sex symbol' status

Frank Chung

Labor frontbencher Jason Clare has responded to suggestions he has become a sex symbol during his time on the campaign trail.

Mr Clare, 50, who holds Paul Keating's old Sydney seat of Blaxland, stepped into the spotlight last week as Anthony Albanese's understudy when the Labor leader was isolating with Covid-19.

The NSW MP drew praise for his assured and easygoing nature in front of the media and his confident delivery of Labor's election messaging.

Mr Albanese even admitted his charismatic right-hand man "is certainly better looking than I am", as he laughed off suggestions Mr Clare should replace him as leader.

After being referred to last week as "Captain Handsome", Mr Clare was asked on Monday if his wife Louise realised "how lucky she is being married to a sex symbol".

"She's watching now, so I don't really know how to answer this question," Mr Clare told Today.

"Other than to say I think Karl [Stefanovic] asked me this question a long time ago. And the answer then is the answer now. She thinks that Stephen Smith, the former Foreign Affairs Minister, is a lot sexier than me."

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Read related topics:Anthony Albanese Scott Morrison