Peter Dutton visits Brighton IGA with Liberal Lyons candidate Susie Bower during a visit to Tasmania

A day after the Prime Minister was in Tasmania, the Opposition Leader visits an electorate that is up for grabs for both major parties. What Peter Dutton did during his time in Tasmania.

Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton at Littlewood Berry Farm in Richmond, Tasmania with Liberal candidate for Lyons Susie Bower. Picture: NewsWire / Linda Higginson

Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has used a trip to Tasmania to bemoan the cost of living situation and promised that, if elected at the next federal election, a Coalition government would help ease it.

His visit follows Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s visit to Tasmania the day before, during which he pledged tens of millions of dollars to projects around the state.

Both Mr Albanese and Mr Dutton made media appearances in the electorate of Lyons, which is anticipated to be a battleground seat for both major parties.

Former Tasmanian Labor Leader Rebecca White is running in the seat against Liberal Susie Bower, who - during the 2022 federal election - lost on a two-party preferred basis by less than one per cent.

During his Tasmanian visit, Mr Dutton also pledged to spend $15,000 on two security upgrades for locations in the Lyons.

The two places that will benefit from the security infrastructure upgrades are Tynwald Park at New Norfolk and Quail Street at St Helens.

“This funding will make a real difference for business owners and residents in Lyons,” Mr Dutton said.

“By investing in security measures like these cameras, we are fostering a safer and more secure environment while supporting the local economy.

“Part of the plan to get Australia Back on Track is about keeping Australia safe – safe for families, safe for businesses, and safe for communities.

“With Susie Bower as the local Liberal Party Candidate for Lyons, the electorate has a committed leader who will take real action to strengthen the community, enhance security, and deliver effective solutions to tackle crime.”

The Opposition Leader was also at Brighton touring the town’s newest IGA with Liberal Lyons Candidate Susie Bower.

“People are really feeling the cost of living pressures here in Tasmania,” Mr Dutton said.

“People have a real appreciation in their own budgets of the increase in energy costs, their mortgages have gone, and every cost in the household budget has gone up over the last two and a half years under Anthony Albanese.”

Mr Dutton said businesses were also feeling the pinch too.

“Here in the (Brighton) IGA business, the price of energy has gone up 30 per cent over the course of the last three years.

“And we know that businesses here, they’re paying more and more - for not just energy - but their insurance, which in some cases is even hard to source, let alone find affordable insurance products.”

Liberal candidate for Lyons, Susie Bower with leader of the opposition, Peter Dutton. Picture: Linda Higginson

As a result, Mr Dutton said that was having a flow-on effect on the consumer.

“So when you’re pulling the berries off the shelf in the supermarket, it’s also the cold storage that the farmer is paying, and the distribution, the packaging; all of the inflationary pressure is why you are paying more for your groceries when you turn up to an IGA or to a supermarket to buy your groceries.

“And that is a direct result of the policies of the Albanese government.

“So we want to get our country back on track; we want to support small business, we want to make sure that we can grow a strong economy, we want to support families and fight the cost of living pressures, we want to make sure that we can help Australians not hurt, and that’s exactly what a Coalition government does.”

Mr Dutton said the Coalition’s energy plan, which would involve nuclear power, would bring down prices.

“The Prime Minister promised a decrease of $275 in power prices; people’s prices have gone up by $1000.

“So we need a good energy policy, which we put forward. And you need to make sure the reckless spending stops.

“At the moment, the federal government is pending money like a drunken sailor, and that’s what’s keeping upwards pressure on inflation.

“So we will cut the government’s wasteful spending, and we will put downward pressure on inflation, which will reduce not just interest rates but inflationary pressures as they are in our economy at the moment.”