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Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton don’t see eye to eye on plenty of policy areas.

Where Albanese and Dutton stand on the eight key issues in this election

New tax and housing policies are latecomers to the campaign agenda that will dominate debate. Medicare and a nuclear energy fight are also in the conversation.

  • Natassia Chrysanthos

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Coalition campaign spokesman James Paterson said public servants could get payouts to leave.

Coalition to pay public servants to leave in redundancy scheme

The latest tweak to the opposition’s policy comes days after it said that natural attrition and a hiring freeze would reduce the public service by 41,000 jobs.

  • Natassia Chrysanthos
Peter Dutton at a state campaign launch in Exton, northern Tasmania, on Sunday.

Three challenges for Dutton in landing the backflip on working from home

The opposition leader has made a necessary decision to stage a big policy shift so he can assure voters – especially women.

  • David Crowe
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.

Dutton dumps controversial plans to axe bureaucrats and end working from home

Dutton will face questions about whether the Coalition can find $7 billion in savings now that the party has ruled out forced redundancies from the public service.

  • Paul Sakkal
Where could Peter Dutton’s DOGE-style cuts come from?

Labor says Dutton’s public service cuts are from the ‘DOGE’ handbook. Here’s where jobs could go

Just 7000 new public service jobs have been created in Canberra under Labor, forcing the Coalition to cut 34,000 jobs from the rest of Australia or gut the capital.

  • Natassia Chrysanthos and Olivia Ireland
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton up his promise of public service cuts to 40,000 workers on Wednesday.

Coalition takes aim at public servants as Dutton looks to cut 40,000 jobs

Tuesday night’s budget shows the government has added 41,411 public servants since 2022, fuelling a political fight over the public service and government spending.

  • Natassia Chrysanthos and Olivia Ireland
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Lauren Bernays with husband Jeffrey - a flexible worker. Photo by Jason South. 11th March 2025.

‘They’re not treating us like adults’: Women call for work flexibility

Peter Dutton says federal public servants will need to return to the office full-time if the Coalition wins. Experts warn it will lead to an exodus of skilled women.

  • Gemma Grant
The Coalition has made clear it will reduce the size of the federal public service.

Dutton’s plan to cull public servants isn’t just risky – it’s misguided

While it’s true Labor has hired 36,000 public servants since 2022, most of them aren’t located where the Coalition leader believes them to be.

  • Shane Wright

Job cut theatre hides the true cost of removing ‘waste’

Readers respond to public service cuts in the US and threats of cuts in Australia. Paul Keating reacts to Peter Hartcher’s latest column.

Cutting waste from the public service is the only one of Donald Trump’s policies that a majority of respondents would like to see in Australia.

The Trump policies Australians hate – and the ones they want here

An exclusive survey shows there is one Trump policy most Australians want, and “drill, baby, drill” is also quite popular.

  • David Crowe

Original URL: https://www.theage.com.au/topic/public-service-60z