Labor powers up cost-of-living debate

Labor’s leadership is urging MPs to keep focused on cost of living, while the nuclear debate is being left to Anthony Albanese and senior ministers amid concern images shared by ALP figures of mutant animals had been counter-productive.

Anthony Albanese Picture: John Appleyard / NewsWire

Labor’s leadership is urging MPs to keep their winter campaigns focused solely on cost of living, while the nuclear debate is being left to Anthony Albanese, Jim Chalmers and Chris Bowen, amid concern in ALP ranks the images shared of mutant animals had been counter-productive.

The direction comes as the Coalition continues preparations for an election as early as September 14, with Peter Dutton likely to fly to Perth over the winter break as part of his campaign to win back the numerous seats lost in the state in 2022.

Despite the party being told to “get ready” for an early election, senior Liberal sources said they did not expect a great deal more detail on the Coalition’s nuclear energy plan until after parliament returned in August.

Opposition energy spokesman Ted O’Brien – who is expected to visit some of the sites selected by the Coalition for nuclear reactors over the winter break – said the nuclear energy costings and detail would come at the same time as the Coalition released its plans for gas and renewables.

Some Labor MPs told The Australian that much of the social media content created in response to the Coalition’s nuclear power plan was “silly” and the energy debate should be more serious.

Queensland Labor MP Graham Perrett said it was important not to alienate people who wanted to have a discussion about nuclear.

“It’s not something I’d joke about,” he said. “Because I think you can’t be serious about cost of living if you’re joking about nuclear power. Power is a serious issue for people.”

Another senior MP said they had been careful not to “run a scare campaign” against nuclear.

“I’m not one of those who’s running the scare campaign against it. I’m not doing any of the silly Facebook stuff or anything like that,” they said.

“It’s a matter of respect … (people) want to have a sensible discussion about it. I’d certainly be prepared to campaign against it but it would be more based on substance and facts.”

Concerns over the views of younger constituents were also raised, with one MP saying it was important the party was seen as being willing to have a “serious discussion on the matter”.

“The younger generation … would be more open to nuclear and I think research shows that. We have to show we’re not antinuclear, we’re just more about how the economics don’t stack up,” they said.

Peter Dutton at the LNP convention in South Brisbane on Sunday. Picture: Richard Walker

The Prime Minister hit back at criticism from the Coalition last month that memes shared by federal and state Labor MPs, including Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan, depicting three-eyed fish were inappropriate.

“We’re not going to take lectures from a mob who said that an Advisory Committee for Indigenous Australians on matters that affected them would lead to everyone lose their house and their private property,” Mr Albanese said on ABC.

A senior Labor source said that while the election would “inevitably end up being about energy” the advice to MPs for the winter, break had been to focus on “talking to constituents about cost of living and understanding the pressure they’re under”.

Mr Albanese said the opposition was “divided over supermarkets, in disarray on the cost of nuclear reactors, in denial on climate change and totally devoid of any policies to help with the cost of living. Peter Dutton’s nuclear policy will deliver the most expensive form of energy there is – in two decades time. We’re focused on delivering cost-of-living relief now, Peter Dutton’s interested in dividing Australians.”

With Mr Albanese needing to win seats in Queensland, The Australian can reveal he will fly to the state during the winter break and announce candidates to run against incumbent Coalition MPs.

Several Labor MPs said they believed it would make “more sense” to wait until after the state election in October before a federal election was called, because of concerns the “negative view” of the state government could bleed through at the national level.

The Liberals will also try to extend the damage done to Labor by Senator Fatima Payman’s resignation, using the saga as proof the government is “divided and distracted”. In response, the Labor leadership is expected to attack Mr Dutton over the “disarray” within Coalition ranks, pointing to the departure of three MPs to the crossbench over the past two years.

While both parties are squaring up over battleground seats of Western Australia and Queensland, the Coalition will hone in on NSW seats such as Bennelong, which is affected by the seat redraw. Labor and the Liberals are expected to throw significant resources into winning the new WA seat of Bullwinkel, which both are confident they can secure.