Treasurer Jim Chalmers, wearing a suit and tie, is speaking.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers compared Opposition leader Peter Dutton's plans to the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which was introduced by Donald Trump and has been tasked with cutting government spending. Source: AAP / Jono Searle

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Politics

Chalmers accuses Dutton of reading 'from DOGE playbook'; RBA leaves rates on hold — as it happened

Here's what happened on day four of the federal election campaign.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers, wearing a suit and tie, is speaking.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers compared Opposition leader Peter Dutton's plans to the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which was introduced by Donald Trump and has been tasked with cutting government spending. Source: AAP / Jono Searle

Published 1 April 2025 6:35am
Updated 1 April 2025 5:58pm
Source: SBS News

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3 days ago1 Apr 12:22pm
Albanese concerned over US trade report
The US has released its annual National Trade Estimate report on foreign trade barriers, which includes a list of grievances with Australian trade.

These include sanitary and phytosanitary barriers in animal and plant health, intellectual property protection (focusing on pharmaceutical products), Australian policies such as the Mandatory Bargaining Code and National Cultural Policy, and barriers for US investors.

When questioned about the report, Anthony Albanese said he was concerned about the US targeting the news bargaining code, pharmaceuticals, and security.

He said these issues are "not up for negotiation" from the Australian government.

"We will defend Australia's interests. The idea that we would weakened via security laws is like cutting off your nose to spite your face," he said.

He said he would not undermine Australia's biosecurity system.

"Not on my watch. On my watch, our biosecurity system is essential. We will negotiate sensibly, but we will not undermine the biosecurity system," he said.

"These are the issues we have been discussing with the US administration. Those discussions are ongoing. I want to see a constructive outcome, but what I will not do is undermine our national protections."

— Jessica Bahr
3 days ago1 Apr 11:24am
Mark Butler responds to Dutton's education claims
Health Minister Mark Butler has responded to Dutton's comments about "woke" education, describing it as "the most extraordinary thing I've heard from an alternative prime minister in this country".

"Over the last 24 hours, he's confirmed again that they'll go back to the schools budget. That's what they did in 2014 again — $50 billion out of hospitals, $30 billion out of education," Butler said.

"He's going to do the same thing again, but it will be even more ideological than it was back then. He said very clearly to schools, if you don't line up with my personal political views, you will lose funding."

— Sara Tomevska
3 days ago1 Apr 11:16am
Dutton's warning to states over 'woke agenda' in schools
Opposition leader Peter Dutton criticised the federal education department during a 'pub test' event on Monday night.

He said while the federal government doesn't employ teachers, "we do provide the funding to the state governments and we can condition that funding".

The Coalition has regularly raised concerns about what it describes as the 'woke' approach being adopted in some schools, saying it extends beyond the curriculum.
"We should be saying to states, and we should be saying to those that are receiving that funding, that we want our kids to be taught the curriculum, and we want our kids to be taught what it is they needed to take on as they face the challenges of the world, and not to be guided into some sort of an agenda that's come out of universities," Dutton told the live forum.

"I think there is a silent majority on this issue right across the community."

— Anna Henderson
3 days ago1 Apr 11:10am
Peter Malinauskas says SA will not support Coalition's nuclear plan
South Australia's premier Peter Malinauskas has definitively ruled out support for nuclear.

"I can't be clearer about it. I mean, his
(Dutton's) plan
would make electricity and energy prices for South Australians more expensive, and there is not a month of Sundays where we would support a plan that would do that," he said.
READ MORE

Who will drive down power bills? What Labor, the Coalition and Greens are promising this election

It comes after comments he made in August 2024, when Malinauskas "welcomed discussion and debate" about the energy source.

"I think it’s an analysis that should be ongoing because maybe in the future — at some point — the economics of nuclear will change as the technology evolves,” he said.

— Sara Tomevska
3 days ago1 Apr 10:51am
Albanese asked about his relationship with the Muslim community
Anthony Albanese has responded to a question about whether he is concerned about anger and backlash from the Muslim community following a series of politicians not being invited to religious sites to celebrate Eid al-Fitr.

"If you look around the world, conflict in the Middle East, conflict and land war in Europe, some wars in Africa, we live in really uncertain times, he said.

"I want us to be a microcosm for the world that can show that people of Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and no religion, can live next door to each other and enrich diversity and respect that we show each other."
READ MORE

Islamophobia envoy should be reviewed but antisemitism envoy's job safe, Dutton says

Politicians from both sides of the aisle have faced criticism from some Muslim communities over their responses to the war in Gaza.

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 10:49am
Why hasn't the PM phoned Trump again over looming tariff threats?
Anthony Albanese says he has had two "very constructive" phone calls with US President Donald Trump after a reporter has asked why the PM's request for a third call with Trump hasn't eventuated.
READ MORE

Is the election promise of cheaper medicines under threat from US tariffs?

"The US is putting forward a position, we are putting forward a position. What happens is that phone calls come together when things are agreed," he said.

"I have very clearly indicated Australia is not negotiating over the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. We are not negotiating over the news bargaining code. We will not undermine our biosecurity."

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 10:34am
Albanese says he won't negotiate over AUKUS terms
Anthony Albanese has been asked if he can guarantee AUKUS will go ahead unchanged should Labor be re-elected into a hung parliament.

"I have said clearly, I will not negotiate over coalitions over our values," he said.

"I am very determined to win an absolute majority, we currently hold 78 seats."
3 days ago1 Apr 10:20am
Albanese asked pointed question about relationship with Donald Trump
Anthony Albanese has been asked a blunt question about his relationship with US President Donald Trump.

"Prime minister, you have previously said that Donald Trump scares the shit out of you, what scares you and are you still frightened about those things?" — the reporter asked.

Albanese responded: "I have a constructive relationship with the president and I look forward to continuing to engage with him."

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 10:14am
Coalition's promise to loosen mortgage lending rules is 'hard to work out', Albanese says
Anthony Albanese has been asked about the Coalition's plan to reduce the serviceability buffer from 3 per cent.

Reducing the buffer would lower the amount banks expect mortgage holders to have as a contingency on their home loans.

Albanese says it's "hard" to work out exactly what the Coalition is promising first home buyers.

"One of the things that we have done is to ensure that banks won't take into account people's HECS debt which is really important.

"In addition to that, the support, we're providing young people is to take 20 per cent further off student debt on top of the $3 billion we reduced HECS debt by, by changing the indexation arrangements which are there. We'll give every young person a tax cut."

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 10:06am
Albanese asked about potential rate cuts
The first question for Anthony Albanese in Adelaide today concerns what the Reserve Bank's rate cut decision later today indicates about the Australian economy, with the bank expected to maintain rates at the current target of 4.1 per cent.

He said the government has "worked hard" with the Australian people to reduce inflation.

"Australians know that inflation had a 6 in front when we were elected. It peaked at 7.8 per cent in 2022 and today it's at 2.4 per cent," he told reporters.
Anthony Albanese, in a suit, shakes hands with a man in a hospital bed.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke to patients at the Flinders Medical Centre in Adelaide. Source: AAP / Lukas Coch
"Australians have worked hard to get those inflation rates down because we know that it has been punishing.

"But what we've done is be able to get the inflation rate down to less than half of what we inherited at the same time we've provided cost of living relief."

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 9:54am
Albanese speaks about Labor's health commitments in Adelaide
Anthony Albanese is speaking from Adelaide today, holding a Medicare card while outlining Labor's health commitments for the upcoming election.

He is in South Australia to announce $150 million towards a health facility in the city's south which the Coalition said it will match.

"This election is about a choice, a choice between Labor strengthening Medicare, supporting cost of living relief, building a stronger economy and building Australia's future and a Coalition government that wants to cut everything except for your taxes."

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 8:52am
Dutton says he wouldn't respond 'like a wet lettuce' to Chinese 'spy ships'
Opposition leader Peter Dutton is urging Australia "to call out bad behaviour in our own region" when asked about the Chinese vessel suspected of collecting intelligence after performing a joint exploration exercise with New Zealand.

Australia's chief of joint operations, Vice Admiral Justin Jones confirmed the Chinese government's deep-sea science and engineering vessel, Tan Suo Yi Hao, entered Australia's Exclusive Economic Zone on 27 March.

"I think there are significant assets that we can deploy to provide a projection of our own force," Dutton told 2HD in Newcastle.

"Make sure that we call out the behaviours, the mapping of undersea cables, which is what's taking place at the moment."

— Rania Yallop
3 days ago1 Apr 8:04am
Reserve Bank to discuss interest rates today
Australia's Reserve Bank (RBA) will be meeting today to discuss whether or not it will change the cash rate target which was reduced to 4.1 per cent when it last met in February.

While many homeowners celebrated the rate cut, economists have warned that despite inflation sitting within the RBA's target range, this does not mean the RBA will cut rates again.
READ MORE

What the latest inflation data could mean for your interest rate

— Jessica Bahr
3 days ago1 Apr 7:50am
Labor to officially launch the election campaign in WA
Anthony Albanese will bring out the 2022 election playbook and again launch his official campaign in Western Australia, according to The West Australian.

It shows just how crucial the state will be for Labor in securing a path to maintain a majority government.
Anthony Albanese holds up a phone, taking a selfie with a group of people.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited a hospital in Perth's north-east on Monday. Source: AAP / Lukas Coch
Albanese has made WA a regular stopping point during his tenure and was in Perth on Monday to announce upgrades to one of the city's busiest hospitals.

The West Australian reported the official campaign launch will be held on 13 April.

— Anna Henderson
3 days ago1 Apr 7:43am
Take a 'deep breath' defence minister says as government monitors Chinese 'spy ship'
Defence Minister Richard Marles is urging people not to "overreact" to the presence of a Chinese ship spotted off the coast of South Australia on Monday.

The Tan Suo Yi Hao was suspected of collecting intelligence after performing a joint exploration exercise with New Zealand.

Marles was asked about the "spy ship" this morning by 2GB Radio.
READ MORE

Chinese 'spy ship' is circumnavigating Australia

"I think we need to just have a step back here and take a bit of a deep breath. We are closely monitoring it," he said.

"We've got a pretty close relationship with New Zealand, so we do have a close sense of, or a good understanding of what the ship is."

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 7:29am
Cost of living is front and centre in this election. Are supermarkets to blame?
Australia's supermarket giants have been under scrutiny for alleged price gouging as prices at Coles and Woolworths have risen by 24 per cent in the last five years.

And now it's becoming an election issue as voters contemplate the party that could save them the most at the checkout.

Anthony Albanese announced on Sunday that if re-elected, Labor will introduce legislation to make price gouging illegal.

In contrast, Peter Dutton has suggested the Coalition would enforce supermarket divestiture powers to address anti-competitive behaviour.

Our reporter Jessica Bahr has taken a look at whether or not supermarkets are in fact price gouging, here:
READ MORE

Are supermarkets being unfairly targeted for price gouging?

3 days ago1 Apr 7:14am
Albanese is in Adelaide today
Anthony Albanese will be joining South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas in Adelaide today to announce more funding for health-related projects.

Albanese has kept the spotlight on health so far this election and will pledge $150 million to build a new healthcare facility in the city's southern electorate of Boothby.

The contested seat is held by Labor's Louise Miller-Frost, who will face a tough challenge from Liberal's Nicolle Flint, who previously held the seat from 2016 to 2022.

The Flinders HealthCARE Centre is expected to create 10,000 extra health appointments and support 1,300 healthcare workers to graduate each year.

Construction wouldn't begin until 2027, but the project will be accounted for in Labor's pre-election financial outlook, due next week.

Health has been a hot-button issue in South Australia for years, with the Malinauskas state government usurping a first-term Liberal government at the 2022 election on a platform to lower ambulance ramping and "fix the state's health crisis".

This announcement builds on Labor's pledge to increase Commonwealth funding for public hospitals in SA by 15 per cent next year, to $2.35 billion.

Albanese told Nova Adelaide radio that the medical system would not be fixed "overnight".

"We're addressing hospital funding, taking pressure off emergency departments and addressing GP shortages, training more doctors," he said ahead of his visit to Flinders University on Tuesday morning.

— Sara Tomevska, Cameron Carr and Ewa Staszewska
3 days ago1 Apr 6:56am
Are Albanese and Dutton trustworthy? New polling suggests not
Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton are neck and neck in the latest Guardian Essential poll, with 1,100 respondents preferring Labor over the Coalition by 48 to 47 per cent, while 5 per cent remain undecided.

It's a small increase for Labor, which is up 1 per cent from mid-March, but Albanese's personal approval rating has dropped 2 per cent since then, with 44 per cent of those surveyed approving of him as a leader. He edged out Dutton's 41 per cent approval rating.
Anthony Albanese, dressed in a suit, embraces a baby while another man in a suit places his hand on the baby, looking at them both.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's personal approval rating has dropped 2 per cent since mid-March in the latest Guardian Essential poll. Source: AAP / Lukas Coch
The poll also asked voters to score the major party leaders on key questions.

When asked if Albanese and Dutton were "out of touch with ordinary people", 57 per cent believed they both are.

Around 53 per cent of voters described Dutton as "decisive", but only 44 per cent said the same about Albanese.

Only 44 per cent of people describe Albanese as "trustworthy," while 41 per cent consider Dutton "trustworthy".

— Cameron Carr
3 days ago1 Apr 6:33am
Coalition would scrap multi-billion dollar Melbourne rail project
Peter Dutton will be heading to Victoria today, where he will reveal plans to scrap federal funding for Melbourne's contentious, multi-billion dollar Suburban Rail Loop.

If elected, he would continue to plough federal funds into the Melbourne Airport Rail Link but would cut the $2.2 billion Commonwealth investment in the orbital suburban route.

Construction of the Suburban Rail Loop is already underway, and the first stage is expected to cost more than the predicted $34.5 billion budget.
A man in a suit walks through a pub holding a woman's hand.
Opposition leader, Peter Dutton, and his wife, Kirilly, were in Queensland on Monday evening, visiting the seat of Dickson. Source: AAP / Mick Tsikas
The full project is touted as the most expensive infrastructure project in Victorian history.

The Coalition says the extra funds saved by cutting the project would be reinvested into other Victorian road and rail projects.

The Melbourne Airport Rail Link funding would also be increased by $1.5 billion.

The Opposition says the decision has come after a report from Infrastructure Australia that was highly critical of the loop project.

— Anna Henderson
3 days ago1 Apr 6:30am
How do the major party's power policies stack up?
The cost of energy has been front and centre in the election so far, and both Labor and the Coalition say their energy transition will "reduce power prices".

Opposition leader Peter Dutton has promised to
 introduce an east coast domestic gas reserve,
which would force exporters to set gas aside for use in Australia.

He said the plan would "drive down" wholesale domestic gas prices by decoupling them from the higher international prices that exported gas attracts.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has a different approach to reducing your power bills.

Core to Labor's strategy is an 82 per cent renewable electricity target by 2030, achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

The government has committed to building more than 4,000km of high-voltage transmission lines to carry renewable energy and connect the country's grid.

Our reporter Ewa Staszewska has crunched the numbers on the costs of the major party's proposals and taken a look at what the Greens have to say, here:
READ MORE

Who will drive down power bills? What Labor, the Coalition and Greens are promising this election

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