Brutal prediction about Australia’s next Prime Minister

A veteran commentator has made a brutal prediction about Anthony Albanese’s future, stating his legacy could already be ‘trashed’.

Anthony Albanese has been urged to consider his future and “resign” even if he wins the next election by a veteran commentator who is no fan of Peter Dutton.

In a brutal prediction of what needs to happen if Labor hangs on to power, columnist Nikki Savva has urged the PM to retire to the NSW Central Coast and enjoy the views at his new home at Copacabana and let some new blood like Treasurer Jim Chalmers take over.

“If Anthony Albanese wins the next election to govern either in majority or minority, he should, after a decent interval, retire so Labor can regenerate,’’ she said.

“He should count his blessings, then gracefully relinquish the job.”

But Savva, a former press secretary to Liberal Treasurer Peter Costello who is not regarded as a fan of the current leader Peter Dutton then suggests this is a “benign view.”

Savva says Anthony Albanese’s legacy could be ‘trashed’ if he loses. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Damian Shaw

“The more drastic, which has been bubbling away inside the wider Labor family, is that (Albanese) has lost his mojo, his judgment has deserted him and if he can’t summon the discipline to shape up, he should ship out before the election to allow someone else to take on a rampant Peter Dutton,’’ she said.

“If Albanese loses next year, which once seemed improbable and now looks possible, obviously he is finished. There will be a bloodbath, he will shoulder much of the blame and his legacy will be trashed.”

Mr Albanese has been dogged in recent weeks by claims of a rift with former leadership rival Tanya Plibersek who he relegated to the environment portfolio after the election stripping her of the higher profile education ministry.

Tanya Plibersek pictured at Question Time at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

In a spicy move, Ms Plibersek is set to launch a biography of Prime Minister James Scullin on Monday night, the last Labor leader to serve a single term as PM during the turmoil of the Great Depression.

In Savva’s column in the Sydney Morning Herald, she notes that Duncan Johnston, owner of one of Melbourne’s iconic bookshops, Hill of Content, which sponsors the prestigious Australian Political Book of the Year Award, introduced Treasurer Jim Chalmers suggesting he could be prime minister this time next year.

Jim Chalmers and his three children. Picture: Facebook / Jim Chalmers MP

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Asked about the column on ABC Radio, Dr Chalmers was quick to brush off the suggestion that the Prime Minister was going anywhere.

“My expectation and my hope is if we do win the election next year that Anthony Albanese serves a full term and runs again. That’s what I would expect to happen, that’s what I would hope would happen,’’ she said.

“The best version of that for me is to continue being the nation’s Treasurer.

“One of the things that we’ll be taking to the Australian people is a sense of stability, a sense that we’ve got an economic plan, we’re rolling that out in difficult times, we’re helping people where we can, and that’s a tribute to Anthony’s leadership that we’ve been able to do that.

“People should anticipate, I certainly anticipate and expect and hope that if we win the next election that Anthony will be around for as long as possible.”

Anthony Albanese’s $4.3m luxury beach home. Picture: Supplied

The couple pictured at the Mid Winter Ball at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire/ Martin Ollman

Savva goes to suggest that Mr Albanese: “Blindsided colleagues when he bought a $4 million beach house, which screamed retirement without regard for the inevitable backlash. He took a week to respond fully to damaging stories about Qantas flight upgrades, apparently because he thought it was such a rubbish story it would soon disappear.”

But she suggested the election is not done and dusted.

“Although Labor’s situation is grim, it is salvageable. It is within Albanese’s power to fix much of it,’’ she said.

“One other single act can influence next year’s election – a cut in interest rates. Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock should not follow the example of her predecessor and baulk at moving rates either through stubbornness, a misreading of an economy clearly on life support, or fear that acting would be seen as politically driven. Not acting is as much a political act as acting.”