Australia election 2025 live: Canberra-based Labor MP labels Coalition’s plan to cut 41,000 ACT public service jobs ‘insane’

In pictures: from suits to hi-vis The Albanese camp attended the West Australian’s breakfast event in the morning, before heading out to the seat of Bullwinkel on the outskirts of Perth. At the end of his press conference, Albanese backed his candidate for Dickson, Ali France, following reporting by News.com.au that France previously shared social media posts depicting Peter Dutton (who she’s running against) as a Nazi and backed claims Israel is an “openly racist apartheid regime”. Albanese says he has no idea how old the tweets are that have resurfaced, but calls France an “extraordinary Australian”. People will go after people’s history going back to more than a decade during the last campaign, Ali France was attacked for using her disability as an excuse for why she lived in the home that she lived in. Ali France is someone who lost her leg saving her child’s life when she pushed a pram forward and was hit by a motor vehicle. Ailey France is an extraordinary Australian. Andrew Leigh, a Canberra based Labor MP, says the Coalition’s plan to trim the size of the public service by 41,000 positions in the ACT only is “insane”. Earlier today, Dutton clarified the Coalition’s target of removing 41,000 positions by the end of the decade does not apply to states and territories beyond Canberra. According to the Australian Public Service Commission, there are 68,435 public servants based in the nation’s capital. That’s roughly one-third of the overall APS workforce. Based on those figures, removing 41,000 positions from the Canberra based workforce - through a mixture of voluntary redundancies or natural attrition - would reduce its size by 59% by the end of the decade. Leigh said “this is insane”: Even if Dutton closed the head offices in Canberra of 12 departments — Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry; Attorney General’s; Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water; Defence; Education; Finance; Foreign Affairs and Trade; Health and Aged Care; Home Affairs; Prime Minister and Cabinet; Treasury; Veterans’ Affairs – he’d still have less than 41,000 job cuts. Dutton makes Doge look restrained. David Littleproud says he believe in climate change Back to the press club, Anna Henderson asks Littleproud whether, following the recent devastating floods in Queensland, he believes in climate change. Littleproud replies: “Yes, I do”: Thargomindah is a perfect example. We had a flood event through there [in] 1974, [this time it was] 7.65 metres... beat it by nearly a metre. So obviously, I respect the science, and we’ll do whatever we can to make sure that we have an energy grid that’s zero emissions … In pictures: Peter Dutton at petrol stop number 14 Dutton is in the seat of Lyons, which is held by retiring MP Brian Mitchell for Labor on a very tight 0.9% margin. The seat is being contested by former Tasmanian Labor leader Rebecca White and Liberal candidate Susie Bowers (who you can see in the background). Social license for nuclear ‘already won’ says Nationals leader While Peter Dutton has been fronting questions about why he hasn’t visited a nuclear site during this election campaign, Littleproud says “there’s no need” because the Coalition has already won the social license. It’s an interesting point he makes, and it goes against some of the other reporting that shows communities aren’t happy with the prospect of nuclear in their backyard. He tells the press club: There’s no need to go in an election campaign where you have already won the votes. We have already won the social licence in those seven communities. Our polling clearly shows that. Dutton hits the pumps, again In an entirely unprecedented move (a bit of sarcasm, here), Peter Dutton is about to arrive at his 14th petrol station of the election campaign. Fresh off polishing off a glass of Pinot noir, the opposition leader arrived at the Ampol in Sorrell to sell his fuel excise policy in case you’ve somehow missed it. Exiting a Susie Bower-branded Mazda, Dutton emerged with a smile, telling the camera crews it was the “most exciting part of the day”. A few cars drive past tooting their horns. Nationals leader David Littleproud says one of his “proudest” moments of his leadership has been to oppose the Voice to parliament. Speaking to the National Press Club, Littleproud says it wasn’t a decision that was made quickly by his party room. Within our party room, in a respectful way we undertook a committee within our party room to listen [to the] yes and no case, to understand what the machinery would look like, what it would mean for us who represent some of the most disadvantaged Indigenous Australians in remote areas. Littleproud says the voice would have repeated “mistakes of the past” and was not the way to empower local communities. I’m proud to say, that after the Voice result, there was no victory lap by the Nationals or the Liberals. We came back to this place up the road, walked in that parliament and Peter Dutton and I moved a motion to undertake a royal commission into child sexual abuse in central Australia. Dutton has a glass in Tasmania’s Campania Peter Dutton stopped in at a vineyard in Tasmania’s Campania in the seats of Lyons. Joined by Sussan Ley, the opposition leader met with the owner, James Bremley, and shared a glass of pinot noir. Dutton said his favourite type of wine was Shiraz, before listing off a number of other varieties of red and white wines. “I don’t discriminate,” he joked. As the media gathered around the wine barrel where Bremley and the politicians stood, Dutton said he would get out some more glasses to share some wine with his favourite journalists but lamented “there are none”. PM rules out dealing with Greens to lower super tax threshold A little earlier in the press conference, Albanese ruled out doing a deal with the Greens to lower the superannuation tax threshold. Labor was forced to abandon its legislation earlier this year, to tax the unrealised capital gains on super balances above $3m. Asked if he’d rule out working with the Greens to bring back that legislation, he said, “yes”. Albanese says fall or stumble in Newcastle ‘no big deal’ The PM might regret bringing up that fall this morning at the West Australian breakfast, because he gets another question on it from Clare Armstrong of News Corp. She asks why it matters whether the PM fell off or stepped off (as he said after it happened). Albanese then says again that he didn’t “fall” but stepped off the stage. It’s kind of become this huge thing that the Liberals are saying is emblematic of the way that, you know, it says something about their character. Frankly, it says something about their character… I stepped off the stage. I didn’t fall over on my backside. I stumbled. That’s what happened. I laughed about it at the time. I laughed about it, since it’s no big deal. The fall/step off incident has also been used by the Liberal party in their advertising to damage Albanese. Albanese says he will visit Indonesia and US if elected ‘but we’re not getting ahead of ourselves’ Albanese is asked where he’ll go first as prime minister if he wins another term of government. Dutton has said recently that he would make the US his first trip if the Coalition won power. Albanese says: Indonesia was my first bilateral visit in the last term to see President Widodo. It was a wonderful visit. I visited Indonesia three times in this term of office, I will, of course visit Indonesia. At some stage, I’ll of course visit the United States. I’ve had invitations from both of those leaders, but we’re not getting ahead of ourselves. A little earlier, Albanese was also asked whether he would use the critical minerals reserve as an “ultimatum”. He said the government would: Engage diplomatically in our national interest, and it is in our national interest to use the full suite of leverages available to us. This is an element in that. Albanese says ‘we have made our policies clear’ Albanese gets a bit antsy with a reporter who asks him about that fall in Cessnock, NSW, and his admission at the breakfast that it was a fall. It was a joke. Chill out. Next. The reporter pivots the question, asking whether there’s anything else the PM wants to clarify. Albanese looks a bit perplexed at first, then says: “Not at all, we have made our policies clear.” 41,000 public servants being cut from Canberra ‘outrageous’ says PM Earlier during that breakfast, the West Australian’s Chris Dore took a stab at Albanese, calling his campaign “shameless” and “outrageous” at times. Albanese is asked whether he’s been stretching the truth. He says people can make their own judgements, but uses the question to rip into Peter Dutton’s commitment that all 41,000 public servants will be taken out of Canberra. Albanese says that decision would see two-thirds of public servants in the nation’s capital sacked: I tell you what’s outrageous. It’s that, because that means Services Australia – that have their headquarters there, that deliver payments to pensioners, that deliver payments to people who are out of work, that deliver emergency payments for people who’ve been through natural disasters… the Australian Signals Directorate, all of our security and intelligence agencies. Where does Peter Dutton think they are based? They are based in Canberra, in our national capital. PM urges people to engage ‘in a respectful way’ at polling booths Albanese, asked about incidents at pre-polling booths, and says it’s important all voters engage in a “respectful way”. It’s important that people engage in a respectful way that includes people who are candidates, but it includes everyone on polling booths as well. The police have to be allowed to do their work for particular incidents. But can I say that for the person who was hurt in my electorate, my thoughts go out to him, and I hope that there is a very swift recovery. Albanese reiterates Australia will not negotiate with US over PBS, media or biosecurity but critical minerals are ‘in demand’ Albanese says critical minerals are an “element in demand”, when asked whether this was a bargaining chip to use in negotiations with the US. King said earlier this morning that there was “no doubt” that the reserve would be helpful in dealing with the US. Albanese repeats his line that the government won’t negotiate with the US on the pharmaceutical benefits scheme, media bargaining code or bio-security. We see it as just an element that is in demand. We know that our critical minerals are in demand … What we do as friends is be prepared to engage in a constructive way. He then makes a stab at Dutton over his stance to put defence on the negotiating table with the US. WA announcements ‘game changers’ says King Unsurprisingly, the WA premier, Roger Cook, is very happy to receive the announcements from the commonwealth. He says the critical mineral strategy will be “fundamental” to growing the resources sector. The federal resources minister, Madeleine King, stands up next, calling the reserve a “game changer”: The strategic reserve, alongside the production tax credits and the increase in the critical minerals facility, [is] together a real game-changers for the emerging critical minerals and [rare earths] industry. King then points to the Nationals’ candidate for Bullwinkel, Mia Davies, who has said that she supports the tax credits, which stands at odds to what the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has said. Albanese promises support for WA rail freight network Following that breakfast, Albanese is now standing up in front of reporters in Perth, standing with the resources minister Madeleine King, WA premier, Roger Cook, and others. They’re in the new seat of Bullwinkel, which is a three-way race between Labor, the Coalition and the Nationals. He’s starting off promising support for the WA rail freight network, which he accuses the Coalition of “flogging off”: The two significant announcements that we’ve made today in critical minerals and in the rail freight network, [are] very important for advancing the WA economy, but also important for advancing our national economy. Albanese says falling off stage worst moment of election campaign so far The PM has been at an event in Perth this morning, hosted by the West Australian. Anthony Albanese acknowledged there that he did fall off a stage in Newcastle earlier on in the campaign. Asked to name the worst moment of the campaign, the PM replied: “Probably falling off the stage.” But before the PM got on to this stage, the West Australian’s editor, Chris Dore ripped into Albanese and Peter Dutton and called the election campaign “lacklustre”. Dore said the PM was following the “Graham Richardson” playbook: Dabbling in a little bit of deceit, cycling through the spin, unrelenting, uncompromising, at times a little bit outrageous … you didn’t invent it but you are perfecting it. Peter Dutton has been stuck in quicksand and in danger of becoming an asterisk in history. Analysis: Coalition plan would reduce size of Canberra’s APS workforce by 59% by end of decade A few moments ago, Peter Dutton said the Coalition’s plan to reduce the size of the public service by 41,000 jobs would only impact Canberra-based positions. According to the Australian Public Service Commission, there are 68,435 public servants based in the nation’s capital. That’s roughly one-third of the overall APS workforce. Based on those figures, removing 41,000 positions from the Canberra based workforce - through a mixture of voluntary redundancies or natural attrition - would reduce its size by 59% by the end of the decade. Dutton has previously ruled out cuts to defence agencies, which would likely also include intelligence agencies, and frontline positions that directly deal with the public. That would mean the impact would likely be more pronounced in other policy departments. Dutton told the press conference the Coalition had been “very clear” that all the 41,000 positions would come from Canberra. He then added another detail: Some of those positions of course have not even been filled yet so they are projected numbers. When asked by a reporter “how many real positions would you cut?”, Dutton called for the next question. Environmental protesters target Dutton venue in Hobart Protesters from the Bob Brown Foundation are outside the venue where Dutton held his press conference in Hobart. Dutton was inside the Catholic Care building to speak to reporters, after hosting a round table there on domestic violence. The protesters were heard shouting: Our climate is under attack. What do we do? No toxic fish farms! End native forest logging! Save the maugean skate. The group has been calling for an end to salmon farming in Tasmania. It’s a hot-button issue, with Anthony Albanese also stepping in with rapid legislation to protect salmon farming in the Macquarie Harbour. Dutton won’t bite on question on trans women A reporter tries to ask Dutton whether the domestic violence support also covers trans women, and whether he believes trans women are women. We discussed gender as well and that is an important discussion as well and we can provide support through programs as we are seeing now. Pressed on whether a trans woman is a woman, Dutton makes reference to the recent supreme court case in the UK, and says: I think a woman is defined as as an adult female, and that’s the best, the definition. Asked again by the reporter to define a woman, Dutton says, “I’ve answered that question”. Peter Dutton is copping a fair bit of heat in this press conference, and is pushed again on the Coalition’s public service policy. A reporter asks how many public servants would be sacked in Hobart if the Coalition wins: they say there’s currently 3,800 public servants working in the city. Dutton says, “none”. The Coalition has promised to cut 41,000 public servants over five years and Dutton’s now clarified that those will all be cut from Canberra. Reporter: There’s 3800 Commonwealth public servants living and working in Hobart… how many of those jobs would you like to see go… Dutton: None. We’ve been clear about that Reporter: You have policy reducing the public service … Dutton: In Canberra, we’re not reducing the public service … Reporter: Only in Canberra? Dutton: We’ve been very clear about that. Things get a little stickier for the opposition leader on the EV tax break issue. Here’s what was said on Monday: Reporter: Labor’s fringe benefit tax exemption for electric vehicles has blown out by hundreds of millions of dollars compared to what was first forecast. Would a Coalition government repeal the EV tax break? Dutton: No, we’ve said that what we’re opposed to is the government’s big tax on hybrids. Dutton says today that there’s been “no policy change”. There has been no policy change, no discussion about that policy this week, it has been long-standing since we took the decision, I answered the question in relation to the tax. Dutton says to the reporter, I think we’re better off just to accept we have a difference of opinion but there’s been no change in policy. Coalition will not support Labor’s critical minerals reserve The opposition claims Labor’s critical mineral reserve announcement is a “refit and rehash reannouncement”. Dutton says the Coalition has supported critical minerals output “from the start”, but is calling Labor’s plan a “reannouncement with no delivery”. We’re not supporting the plan because it is a refit and rehash and renouncement with no delivery. Critical minerals are absolutely essential for us and for our partners and whether that looks like an off-take agreement or whether it looks like an agreement to stockpile it to work with the US in the UK in Japan, etc we will work all that detail and in government. Earlier in the presser, Dutton was asked about what more he’d do to secure a deal with the US to avoid the latest round of tariffs. He said again the election was a choice between leaders and used the question to attack Labor’s critical minerals announcement today. Pressed further, he brought up defence manufacturing again, but couldn’t say any more on how he’d use that to entice the US. Dutton says PM ‘sleeps well at night’ despite living ‘not too far’ from Lucas Heights Our reporter Sarah Basford Canales asks Dutton about his refusal to visit communities that live where the Coalition has proposed seven nuclear sites during this election campaign. That’s despite, she says, him visiting 13 petrol stations to talk about the fuel excise cut. Dutton at first jumps on the mention of the petrol stations to spruik the party’s excise policy. Basford Canales pushes back and asks whether he’s done that in the last 25 days (he hasn’t). Dutton says he’s been to “three communities”, including Collie in Western Australia. Within those communities we listen to views and made [our] policy clear. He then makes a strange reference to Anthony Albanese living near Lucas Heights (which is home to a nuclear medicine facility). It is a proven technology accepted by the prime minister in relation to nuclear submarines and as you know the prime [minister lives] not too far from Lucas Heights. He sleeps well at night. A quick google maps check says Marrickville and Lucas Heights are just under 30km apart. Next, Dutton is asked to clarify his position on scrapping the EV tax breaks, when he said two days ago that he wouldn’t repeal them. Dutton says he’s been “clear” that the Coalition doesn’t support a tax on the Ford Ranger and other heavy petrol using cars. That was the answer I gave and you referred to that we will not support the big tax on cars. I have been clear about that and clear in relation to policies on EV, our policy has not changed. Asked if the Coalition repealing the EV tax break would be retrospective, Dutton wouldn’t answer. Dutton says ‘our policy is not changed and will not change’ over Coalition recognising West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital Dutton is also asked to clarify comments over the opposition’s position on recognising West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Recognising West Jerusalem as the capital was a Scott Morrison-era decision that was reversed by Labor when it came into power in 2022. Yesterday Dutton said in a press conference, “We don’t have any plans to change the current arrangements.” (Which was assumed to mean the Coalition wouldn’t change the current arrangements to recognise Tel Aviv as the capital.) But a spokesperson for the Opposition leader told some media the Coalition had no plans to change its current position, which is to recognise West Jerusalem. Dutton says: I said yesterday that our policy is not changed and will not change. Dutton promises permanent migration to be cut by 25% if Coalition elected To questions, the first one in on the Coalition’s migration plan. The reporter points out that the current permanent skilled intake is just over 130,000, but the shadow immigration minister this morning said that skilled migration would be cut to 150,000 – so is the Coalition actually proposing an increase? After a bit of back and forth, Dutton says he has “not seen the comments made this morning” but promises permanent migration will be cut by 25%. Cash says Coalition’s national domestic violence register will help agencies make informed decisions and share information Ley attacks Labor for not reaching its promise to deliver 500 domestic and family violence case workers across the country. I know that women are critical periods of their lives when they needed help, when they needed assistance, were not able to find that help. The shadow attorney general, Michaelia Cash, then steps up to address the measures included in the $90m of funding. She says the Coalition will set up a national domestic violence register, to help agencies to make informed decisions and allow states and territories to share information. At the moment, there is no national domestic violence register... What we’re going to do is work the states and territories to pull together the information they have so that it any given time those police and those agencies across Australia have all of the information that they need. She says two new offences will be created to stop offenders being able to use a mobile phone or computer device to intimidate or spy on a partner or family member. Ley announces $90m in additional funding for anti-domestic violence measures: ‘enough is enough’ Peter Dutton is standing up in front of reporters in Hobart this morning. The deputy Liberal leader and shadow minister for women, Sussan Ley, begins by announcing $90m of additional funding for domestic violence. (She accidentally says $90bn, before correcting that quickly to million). [This is] really, really important funding because the scourge of family violence reaches into every corner of this country and into every cohort of Australian society. Every time we recommit with new funding such as we are today, we make the statement that enough is enough. Almost one woman every week is killed by a current or former partner in Australia. Ley adds that police respond to callouts for domestic violence incidences every six minutes. Viewership rises slightly for third leaders’ debate The third leaders debate on Tuesday night on Nine had a national television audience of 1.1 million, slightly up from the second debate on the ABC last week which had 1.01 million viewers. Nine’s “The Great Debate – Election 2025: Australia Decides” recorded a total TV national audience of 1,097,000 and a BVOD (streaming) audience of 93,000. According to official ratings figures the program had a total TV national reach of 2.1 million. The fourth and final debate between Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton will screen on Seven on Sunday night. Nine’s debate was moderated by A Current Affair’s Ally Langdon with questions from Nine News’ political editor, Charles Croucher, Nine Radio’s Deb Knight and the Australian Financial Review’s Phil Coorey. This post was edited to clarify that reach and audience figures are different metrics. ‘Right-wing bullies’ behind altercation at event, Ryan says Ryan said she spoke to the woman after the event who was “a bit horrified by the whole thing”: She was really enjoying the event, it was a really worthwhile thing and she was really angry at these gentlemen for disrupting them. She said as she spoke with the woman, another candidate called the police and members of the audience and organisers escorted the men out of the library. Asked why she thought they crashed the event, Ryan answered: It was stupid, pointless posturing, basically by these right-wing bullies .... It was a community forum, where people were having an opportunity to talk to their political candidates about things that they matter to them and these people were just undertaking pointless disruption. It’s really unfortunate, because we had a similar event at an asylum seekers forum the night before. We’re seeing an increase in incidence of right wing rabble risers basically disrupting community events. It’s really just disappointing. Kooyong MP Monique Ryan was earlier on ABC Radio Melbourne, saying the men arrived about 15-20 minutes into the forum. She said: I was just answering a question from the audience when I saw three men enter the back of the room and it felt a bit strange. They clearly weren’t there to attend the forum. I’m not sure that they had any great interest in the media diversity in this country and they looked a bit menacing, and they pretty much immediately started shouting and disrupted the meeting for about 20 minutes. Ryan said the men shouted about anti-immigration, crime and rape, which she said distressed the predominately older audience who were “really taken aback by the events and clearly a bit threatened by them”, including the woman who was filmed throwing a punch at one of the men. She went on: She was clearly expressing distress. She was kind of screaming, actually. And then she went over to him, and she sort of threw a punch at him. She was a little lady, pretty frail and he was not a small man, and I was really concerned about that, and the potential for that to escalate, where he did give her a push or something like that ... I firmly moved her away and asked another member of the audience to look after her. Peter Dutton’s domestic violence roundtable, through the lens The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, is holding a roundtable on domestic violence in Hobart. As our Sarah Basford Canales brought you earlier, Dutton, along with members of his front bench, are meeting with leaders from CatholicCare Tasmania. Allegra Spenders asks AEC to reconsider decision not to identify person behind ‘false and defamatory’ pamphlets about her Teal independent Allegra Spender says she wants the Australian electoral commission to reveal the person that is behind unauthorised flyers being sent around her electorate. The AEC has been investigating the flyers that are critical of Spender, but have said they won’t identify the person. Spender said in a statement, that she’s asking the AEC to reconsider that decision. I am concerned that the AEC has announced that it will not identify the person responsible and will not decide whether to prosecute them until after the election. This pamphlet made false and defamatory claims against me and deliberately flouted the Australian Electoral laws regarding the authorisation of election material. I will be asking the AEC to reconsider its decision or explain what compelling reasons it might have in this case to override its responsibilities to inform the public and enforce the law. Police are investigating an altercation at a candidates’ forum in the Melbourne seat of Kooyong, during which a woman threw a punch at a man who gatecrashed the event. The local MP, Monique Ryan, intervened to stop attendees from getting into physical altercations with a group of men who crashed the forum at Kew Library on Wednesday night, which had been organised by Friends of the ABC. Greens candidate Jackie Carter and Labor candidate Clive Crosby also attended the event. In footage of the incident captured by a reporter from the Age, a woman is seen throwing a punch at one of the men. She is then pulled back by Ryan and another woman. Police this morning have confirmed they were called to the library on Cotham Road about 6.30pm after reports three men had disrupted a meeting inside. They said the men were removed before they arrived but they spoke to them outside: At this stage no further complaints have been made to police. The investigation is ongoing. The Coalition says its policy backflip on tax breaks for electric vehicles has been “misunderstood”. The Coalition’s campaign spokesperson, James Paterson, told Sky News this morning that the party has been “highly critical” of the policy from the start. The tax break is currently available to those who purchase an EV worth less than $91,387 through a novated lease. Paterson said: I think this has just been misunderstood, Pete [Stefanovic]. From the very beginning, we’ve been highly critical of this policy. Pushed again on why just two days ago, Peter Dutton said there wouldn’t be any changes to the tax break, Paterson said: I think that was just lost in translation, to be honest, Pete. Peter Dutton was, I think, clearly referring to Labor’s plan to tax new vehicles, which we don’t support. Two people have been charged over incidents at pre-polling booths, including a teenager accused of punching an elderly man during a tense stand-off in the prime minister’s electorate, AAP reports. Police have charged a 17-year-old with assault occasioning actual bodily harm after the incident at Ashfield, in Sydney’s inner west, on Wednesday afternoon. He allegedly punched a 79-year-old man in the face outside a pre-polling centre in the suburb, which falls within Anthony Albanese’s electorate of Grayndler. The elderly man was taken to hospital in a serious condition with head injuries. He was reportedly wearing a Make America Great Again hat and tried to vandalise a corflute before the attack. The teenager was refused police bail and will face a children’s court today. A 30-year-old man was charged with intimidation after allegedly behaving aggressively towards a number of volunteers in a separate incident at Macquarie Park, in Sydney’s northwest. Police alleged the man kicked over a number of corflutes about 11am, before being aggressive to three volunteers, including a 32-year-old female. Video of the incident shows the man, wearing a hood, knocking down one sign before picking another one up and throwing it in the direction of a man wearing Liberal Party paraphernalia. He walked off after the alleged incident and no one was injured. Police arrested the man at a nearby unit about 1pm. He was given bail and will face Burwood Local Court on 2 June. Macquarie Park sits inside the seat of Bennelong. Peter Dutton is in New Town in Hobart’s northern suburbs to visit a Catholic social services provider after his family violence funding announcement overnight. We’re in the seat of Clark, held by the independent MP Andrew Wilkie on a very safe margin of 31% on a two-candidate preferred basis. The opposition leader was joined by the party’s deputy leader, Sussan Ley, Michaelia Cash and Kerrynne Liddle at the brief roundtable with CatholicCare Tasmania leaders on Thursday morning. Julia Mangan, the company’s chief executive, said the issue of violence against women in the community was at “epidemic proportions”. We are seeing women dying daily. Enough is enough. It’s past the point of worrying about upsetting certain people or segments of the community, and it’s absolutely time to call out the issue for what it is. Dutton is expected to stand up for a press conference shortly. The Australian Conservation Foundation says the Coalition’s made a “bad call” in its decision to scrap tax breaks for electric vehicle drivers. Last night the Coalition backflipped on the tax breaks, confirming it would axe them, just two days after Peter Dutton had ruled that out. On Monday, Dutton was asked if the Coalition government would repeal a tax break available to drivers who purchase an EV worth less than $91,387 through a novated lease. He said: No, we’ve said that what we’re opposed to is the government’s big tax on hybrids. The ACF’s Gavan McFadzean says the decision will make it harder for consumers to switch to cleaner cars. This is a bad call by the Coalition that will fuel more climate damage. The Coalition is subsidising petrol and making it harder for people to switch to cleaner cars. Having a last-century approach to transport emissions would come back and hit Australia through air pollution, climate pollution, noise and health impacts. Has Dutton visited the communities that could be affected by his proposed nuclear sites? Yesterday, my colleague Sarah Basford-Canales asked the opposition leader why he hadn’t visited communities at the seven proposed nuclear sites and consulted with them on the policy. After all, Peter Dutton’s been extremely critical of Labor not consulting enough with communities in the NSW Illawarra region to build offshore wind turbines in that area. Dutton replied saying he had visited communities near the sites on election the trail … but has he? Sarah and Josh Butler took a look, and it turns out he hasn’t been within 50km of a proposed nuclear site during this campaign. Tehan says the Coalition won’t cut the number of family visas available in its migration plan: We’re not targeting family visas, we’ve made it very clear how we will reduce the 100,000 we’ve set that out very clearly in our policy. Sally Sara also asks what the Coalition will do about the backlog of partner visas, and whether it will be a “priority” for a Coalition government to clear the backlog. Tehan says: Well, we will make sure that we do what we did when we’re in government, we will process all these visas, as the normally process, and we will make sure that we do it in a very orderly manner, and we’ll do it in a way where we have a very balanced migration program. Coalition says tightening ‘visa hopping’ rules will cut 100,000 migrants in first year Following Madeleine King, the shadow minister for immigration, Dan Tehan, appears on RN Breakfast to talk migration. The Coalition has promised to cut net migration by 100,000 people in one year, by cutting permanent migration by 25%, and reducing international student numbers. Tehan says the Coalition will also review the temporary graduate visa and tighten visa rules to stop “visa hopping” to reduce net migration. We think this will reduce the net overseas migration rate [in the first year] first year by 100,000. Host Sally Sara asks how the Coalition will ensure that there are enough tradies and aged care workers who are needed from overseas if these numbers are being cut. Tehan says: We’re going to make sure that we prioritise those areas. So even though we brought in nearly a million migrants in those first two years, we then asked and did the research as to how many of those 1 million were actually in the trades area, and it was less than 10,000, now we’ve said we want to prioritise those trades areas. Which minerals will be in the strategic reserve? King says government has not yet decided The resources minister, Madeleine King, says the strategic reserve is in Australia’s national interest, but the government hasn’t yet decided which critical minerals will be included in it. King tells ABC RN Breakfast there are two mechanisms to develop the stockpile: A national offtake agreement … the government will enter into agreements to acquire volumes of critical minerals from commercial projects, and that is entirely voluntary. And there’s also an element of selective stockpiling … the government assesses and does extensive consultation around what particular minerals would be best to stockpile, we will pursue that and purchase it through an extension of the critical minerals facility. The government has said that Australia would deal with close allies for the critical minerals reserve, including the US. Australia previously – after round one of the US tariffs came into effect – tried to negotiate with the US on critical minerals, to no avail. But King says she believes the stockpile will be “helpful” for discussions with Trump. There is no doubt it could come in helpful for negotiations with the US administration, but equally with other partners who have already participated really actively and very reliably in our critical minerals industry. Coalition says Labor pulling a ‘cruel hoax’ over Medicare by ‘trying to pretend’ families aren’t struggling to see a doctor The shadow health minister, Anne Ruston, has followed her Labor counterpart on ABC News Breakfast, and is also challenged on bulk billing rates. The Coalition has matched Labor’s $8.5bn bulk billing commitment dollar-for-dollar, but says that Labor are “trying to pretend” that families aren’t struggling to see a doctor right now. She calls it a “cruel hoax”. The host, Bridget Brennan, pushes her, asking how the Coalition would turn it around it their commitment is the same as Labor’s. Her answer: The really cruel hoax going on at the moment with the Labor party about this important announcement is, you know, trying to pretend that it isn’t harder or more expensive to see a doctor than it is right now. We’ve done it before and we believe that we can do it again but there’s no point lying to Australians that everything is fine at the moment. It’s not. Around 50,000 people turned away from food banks each month, as charities struggle to keep up with demand, a new report from OzHarvest has found. The survey of frontline charities reveals 77% have witnessed a surge in people seeking food in the past year, with an estimated 50,000 people unable to be supported every month by responding charities as services simply cannot keep up. The survey found: 77% of charities have seen an increase in the number of people seeking food support in the last year. Nearly one-third (31%) of people seeking food relief are doing so for the first time. 72% of charities need more food to meet. Charities reported a 54% increase in the number of people they are unable to support demand. Families (48%) and single parents (31%) represent the largest groups seeking support. 55% say providing food increased a sense of dignity and self-worth in the people they support. OzHarvest’s founder, Ronni Kahn, said: This is a national emergency hiding in plain sight … Every day we’re out in communities across Australia supporting 1,550 charities that are stretched beyond their limits, as the gap between demand and resources keeps widening. In addition, we have 1,200 charities on the waitlist to receive food. We are in the midst of a national food security crisis. Driven by the rising cost of living, stagnant wages, and spiralling housing costs and energy bills, Australians are sacrificing food just to get by. Butler defends bulk-billing pledge against criticism from GPs Butler is also challenged on bulk billing rates – according to the ABC, 90% of GPs they spoke to said they wouldn’t move to full bulk billing under the $8.5bn investment promised by the government. Butler tells News Breakfast the policy was carefully calculated and three-quarters of practices would be better off under the changes. We know exactly what doctors are charging right now and we know three-quarters of practices financially will be better off if they take up this investment that we have announced. What I have done with these investments is lift the salary of a fully bulk billing GP from $280,000 two years ago to $400,000 after these investments take effect. That is a $125,000 salary increase, after they pay their practice fees, if they bulk bill. Butler is then asked about the investment in men’s mental health he’s announcing today. He says he’s announcing a range of funding deals to partner with organisations that deliver mental health support for men. [We’re] partnering with organisations that have a great track record in this area, Movember, the Men’s Shed association, the Black Dog Institute, to lift the willingness of Australian men to seek help… We [men] are damn hopeless at it and what it means is we have poorer health outcomes than the general population as well. Butler says critical minerals reserve would be ‘reliable supplier’ for Japan, South Korea and possibly the US The critical mineral strategic reserve was already announced by the government, after the Trump administration announced its second round of tariffs on all countries. Cabinet minister Mark Butler is doing the media rounds this morning (also to promote the men’s health announcement), and is asked on News Breakfast if the reserve would be a “bargaining chip” for Trump? Butler says it’s a “broader” strategy to become a supplier of critical minerals. More broadly, we want to be an important supplier of these critical minerals and rare earths that are going to be so important for the 21st century global economy. Nations we do business with like Japan and South Korea want a reliable supplier but I am sure the US administration will be interested in this as well. Butler adds that the reserve sits alongside production tax credits that are already in place for critical minerals, to help incentivise companies to contribute to the reserve. Labor will establish a critical minerals strategic reserve, which it says will help Australia stand up for its national interest in a complex and changing geostrategic environment. The government would stockpile large amounts of mining products and rare earth materials and would generate money through the sale of minerals on global markets to allies. Stockpiles of the minerals would be set aside from commercial projects through contracts. Labor would make an initial $1.2bn investment into the reserve. The announcement is being made in WA, a critical mining state, and one which helped Labor win government in 2022. Albanese will speak on the announcement in Perth later today, but said in a statement, the reserve will be critical in a time of “global uncertainty”. In a time of global uncertainty, Australia will be stronger and safer by developing our critical national assets to create economic opportunity and resilience. It will mean we can deal with trade and market disruptions from a position of strength, because Australia will be able to call on an internationally significant quantity of resources in global demand. Good morning from Krishani Krishani Dhanji here with you, thanks to Martin Farrer for getting us started this morning. We’re into single digits in the election countdown – there are just nine days to go until 3 May. The prime minister is in WA this morning, with the government announcing more details on its critical mineral strategic reserve, which Labor first brought up in response to Trump’s second round of tariffs. Labor has also this morning announced funding for men’s health. The opposition leader is in Tasmania, and is making announcements to combat domestic violence. We’ll bring all of that to you as it comes. Crossbench urges next government to increase income support More than 70 independent and minor party candidates have signed an open letter calling on the next government to substantially increase income support. The joint statement, signed with the Australian Council of Social Service, says the current rate of jobseeker ($56 a day) and youth allowance ($48 a day) sit “well below all measures of adequacy”. It noted that the current rate of jobseeker is just 43.5% of the minimum wage and “well below the poverty line”, and that people on jobseeker are 14 times more likely to go without a substantial meal a day. The joint letter also pointed to research showing there are no affordable rentals for someone receiving either of the payments, and that many people skip medication and healthcare “just to keep a roof over their head.” 74 independent and minor party candidates have signed the letter, including Zali Steggall, Monique Ryan, Andrew Wilkie, David Pocock, Jacqui Lambie, Allegra Spender, Kate Chaney, Lidia Thorpe, Fatima Payman, and Greens representatives and candidates. Wilkie said in a statement it was time the major parties “acknowledge the mountains of evidence, report after report, and the lived experience of anyone struggling to get by on an income support payment.” The next federal government must raise the rate. To do anything else in the face of all this evidence is just a deliberate act of cruelty. Ryan said that increasing the rate would help people rejoin the workforce, students complete their studies, and single parents raise the next generation. Pocock said raising the rate above the poverty line and increasing the rate of commonwealth rent assistance was “the most powerful thing we can do to end chronic intergenerational disadvantage in our community”. A swing against the Coalition in the opinion polls has encouraged Anthony Albanese to target Liberal-held seats previously considered out of reach, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. These include the usually rock-solid Coalition seats of Menzies and Deakin in Melbourne where the prime minister has visited during the campaign. The paper also notes that Peter Dutton has been avoiding teal-held inner-city such as Wentworth (once a reliably Liberal hold) and has not even even been to Labor-held marginals such as such as Bennelong in Sydney or Chisholm in Melbourne, suggesting he doesn’t think he can win. Instead he has concentrated on outer suburbs where, the piece notes, Labor strategists recognise that the party could still be vulnerable over concerns about the cost of living. A $32m investment from Labor would see more support for men’s health and help to break down the barriers that often prevent men getting the healthcare they need. A re-elected Labor government would invest $11.3m in the men’s health charity Movember to provide training to over 60,000 doctors and nurses, as well as to develop a campaign to encourage men to visit the doctor. The training would be based on Movember’s existing Men in Mind program currently offered to mental health workers. The evidence-based program provides an examination of men’s gender socialisation, as the internalisation of masculine ideals often sees them avoid being open about health problems. The health minister, Mark Butler, said “this investment by Labor into Movember’s training will mean doctors and nurses have the right tools to support men”. Labor would also provide $20.7m for grassroots initiatives that support men’s mental health and wellbeing in community settings, including $8.3m to support two years of Men’s Shed Initiatives grants in the community and for the organisation to deliver new health promotion and prevention programs. The government would also invest $7.4m to Movember to expand the Ahead of the Game program, delivered in partnership with the AFL, which teaches young men in sporting environments to seek help when they need it, as well as $3m for the Plus Paternal Initiative, which helps men prepare for fatherhood. The Black Dog Institute would also receive $2m to research men’s mental health and suicide prevention. Michelle Terry, the chief executive officer of Movember, said “Australian boys and men are slipping through the cracks of our healthcare system at an alarming rate, and without targeted support, too many are missing out on the care they need”. Movember welcomes this groundbreaking investment, including the overall lift in funding for our partners in health and the momentum this announcement will build for even greater focus on the health, mental health and wellbeing of Australia’s boys and men. The Australian Electoral Commission says it has identified the person who sent thousands of unauthorised campaign pamphlets threatening to “expose” the independent MP Allegra Spender, the Australian Associated Press reports. The commission set up an investigation after more than 47,000 flyers without authorisation were distributed in the eastern Sydney electorate of Wentworth. The pamphlets claim to be “produced by the people of Wentworth, for the people of Wentworth”, but a lack of official authorisation means voters do not know where its information is sourced from – putting the pamphlets in breach of Australia’s main election law. Following the investigation, the electoral commission said it had identified the person behind the campaign, who has no link to political parties or candidates contesting the seat of Wentworth. “To date, our investigation has only identified evidence that this individual has acted alone, and the individual concerned has confirmed this is the case,” the commission said last night. The commission said the person behind the campaign had pledged to not distribute the flyers or any other unauthorised material. “The AEC will not be providing the name of this person at this time,” it said. “Voters are reminded to stop and consider the source of all messages relating to the 2025 federal election.” Once considered a blue-ribbon Liberal seat, Wentworth was taken off the Coalition at the 2022 election by Spender, making it a tightly contested electorate at the May 3 poll. The pamphlets claimed Spender had “misled the electorate on her positions”. The independent MP said its contents were “false, misleading and offensive”. Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it’ll be Krishani Dhanji with the main action. We have an exclusive story this morning reporting that Indonesia’s ambassador met senior Australian diplomats on Tuesday – and on the same day Anthony Albanese accused Peter Dutton of damaging the bilateral relationship over claims Russia was seeking a military presence in the region. After spruiking his plans to boost defence spending yesterday, Peter Dutton turns to the problem of domestic violence today as he announces a suite of policies to tackle the scourge. He will say that a Coalition government would criminalise the use of mobile phones to threaten and track partners and create a national register to allow police to share information about violence offenders. Today Labor is pushing its policies to improve men’s health with a $32m investment boost – more on that soon. And the AEC has identified the person who sent thousands of unauthorised campaign pamphlets threatening to “expose” the independent MP Allegra Spender and “what she stands for”. More on that too coming up. Labor has outspent the Coalition on television advertising, figures out today reveal, but Clive Palmer’s Trumpet of Patriots party has spent more than everyone on YouTube, where he has forked out more than $4m. The Gaza war will be a factor in many federal election contests such as Tony Burke’s south-west Sydney seat of Watson where Muslim voters “sick of being ignored” are expected to make their anger felt.