What we learned – Tuesday 8 April
Many thanks for joining us on the election campaign live blog – that’s where we’ll leave things for now.
But stay tuned, as we’ll be launching a separate live blog shortly to bring you all the key moments from tonight’s leaders’ debate, beginning at 7.30pm AEST.
For now, here were the main takeaways from the campaign trail today:
Anthony Albanese unveiled a $1bn mental health plan, which would include upgrading or establishing dozens of Medicare, Headspace and youth mental health centres.
His press conference was interrupted by climate protestors, who said Labor had approved more coalmines during its term.
Peter Dutton, meanwhile, spruiked his fuel excise promise and turned up the heat on the economy and the risk of a recession.
He faced more questions over his work from home policy backflip and a questionable now-ex-candidate.
The Greens are urging the Reserve Bank to call an urgent meeting to drop interest rates now, rather than when the bank next meets in May.
Nationals leader, David Littleproud, said the civil rights of an individual “need to be put aside” for the safety of a community, in response to concerns over youth crime.
And doctors in NSW hospitals went on strike for the first time this millennium, with today the first of three days of industrial action planned across the state’s hospitals.
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Marles calls on Hastie to clarify his views on women serving in ADF combat roles
At a doorstop earlier today, deputy prime minister Richard Marles asked shadow defence minister Andrew Hastie to clarify his views on women serving in combat roles in the ADF.
Ben Britton was dumped as the Liberal candidate for the seat of Whitlam after it was revealed he had expressed a string of controversial views on fringe podcasts before his preselection – including that women should not serve in ADF combat positions.
Hastie also said back in 2018 women shouldn’t be on the frontline of combat. Britton defended his views on 2GB today, saying:
My position is the same as Andrew Hastie, the shadow minister for defence, and the great Jim Molan — that women should not serve specifically in combat roles, specifically in the army itself.
Speaking at a doorstop earlier, Marles told reporters:
It is untenable to have a defence minister in Australia who feels that women should not be able to participate in combat roles. Now that Ben Britton has made these comments about Andrew Hastie, it is absolutely imperative that Andrew Hastie clarifies this matter.
In a statement earlier this afternoon, a spokesperson for Hastie said his comments were “made more than seven years ago based on his own experience serving in the Special Air Service Regiment”, and there was “no intent to change personnel policy in the [ADF] regarding combat roles.” You can read the full statement earlier in the blog.
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TLDR: week two of the election campaign – video
The last couple days of the election campaign has been dominated by one story: the mess that is the Coalition’s work from home policy and public service staff cuts.
Guardian Australia’s Krishani Dhanji catches you up on the twists and turns of Peter Dutton’s policy, as well as Labor’s big announcements this week.
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Lambie responds to dumped Liberal candidate’s comments that women shouldn’t serve in ADF combat roles
Jacqui Lambie was also asked about comments from the dumped Liberal candidate for the seat of Whitlam, Benjamin Britton, who said women should not serve in combat positions with the ADF.
Lambie said she found the comments offensive and “absolutely disgraceful”, as one of the less than 1% of combat females in the army:
My body is broken for that. I would never, ever not do my time in the military again and become one of those combat females. It’s one of the proudest moments of my life to say I’ve been one of those combat females.
And I don’t care what it’s done to my body, but to know I can stand with those boys on that frontline and take it right up to them and have earned that and have earned that with those men, for him to come out and say that is absolutely disgraceful.
It’s absolutely disgraceful. If he was in a combat unit with me, he would have been fixed up in a split second and that would have stopped and he knows it and so do I.
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Lambie says Australia will ‘probably have to go through a recession’
Asked if she is worried Australia is going to fall into a recession amid the US tariffs, Jacqui Lambie argued the country was already headed that way:
I live in one of the top 10 poorest electorates and I can see what’s been going on in the last 18 months, and in the last three months, I’ve never seen so many shops close – and this is before the Trump stuff.
So we have some issues out there with the economy, and this is without tariffs hitting us. We were already in trouble, all right? So people need to stop using the blame game on tariffs because we’re already heading there. The tariff has been a blow over the top of us which is not helpful.
Asked about Peter Dutton’s suggestion there would be a recession under Labor and a different outcome under the Coalition, Lambie said it was “too far gone” for him to make that argument:
I think it’s too far gone … You can’t go this far down and be this close to recession and say, ‘I’ll be able to fix it overnight’. It doesn’t work like that. Unfortunately, we will probably have to go through a recession and that is the truth of the matter.
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Lambie suggests using defence relationship as leverage over tariffs
Independent senator Jacqui Lambie was also up on ABC Afternoon Briefing this afternoon, to discuss Australia’s discussions with the Trump administration regarding tariffs.
She argued that the Pine Gap intelligence base could be used as a bargaining chip “tomorrow”, as well as the rotation of US marines in the Northern Territory.
There are things that you can go and do which do not involve tariffs, that you can go at the US and really hold them accountable for a few things and say ‘nah, come back to the table, otherwise we’re going to switch this stuff off’. They don’t have the guts to do that.
She argued that Peter Dutton had “nothing new on the table” regarding this, and Anthony Albanese was “sitting on the fence”.
The Tasmanian senator was also asked about comments from John Howard that Australia shouldn’t use its defence relationship as leverage with the US. Lambie said she disagreed with him:
I don’t agree with John Howard. I think that’s absolute bloody rubbish … Start getting tough here. You’re dealing with Donald Trump, and in the meantime we’ve got two weak leaders that go ‘I just don’t know what to do about this’ … Put your big-boy pants on and toughen up!
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Ruston rules out reports of factional attempt to move Dutton on post-election
As we reported earlier, Ben Britton – who was dumped by the Liberal party as a candidate for the NSW seat of Whitlam after some controversial views were revealed by the Guardian – called his dumping a “witch hunt” and accusing the NSW division of stabbing Peter Dutton in the back.
Anne Ruston was asked about this, and whether there is a factional attempt to do the numbers to try and move Dutton on post-election?
She ruled this out, and said “nothing could be more ridiculous.”
Peter Dutton is doing an amazing job of leading the Coalition into this election and keeping a coordinated team together in the last three years.
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Ruston ‘confident’ in Coalition’s economic track record when asked about recession potential
Peter Dutton today said that Australia is heading to a recession under Labor.
Asked if the Coalition could stop a recession if elected, Anne Ruston told ABC Afternoon Briefing:
The track record of a Coalition that stands head and shoulder above any Labor government this country has had is we are good economic managers and our track record shows that.
After listing a number of Coalition economic measures, she was asked again – could a Coalition really avoid Australia going into recession if it wins on 3 May? Ruston said:
We are confident that the strong plan we are putting to the Australian public at this election is something that will make sure that Australia’s economy is absolutely strong … I’m confident we have a proven track record of economic management.
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Shadow health minister responds to government’s $1bn mental health plan
The shadow health minister, Anne Ruston, is up on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing to respond to the government’s $1bn mental health plan.
The investment would include upgrading or establishing dozens of Medicare, Headspace and youth mental health centres. Ruston said the Coalition welcomed some measures, but should have gone further:
The thing I was most disappointed about today is … that access to Medicare-subsidised mental health sessions – that were slashed in half by the Albanese Labor government in January 2023 – they haven’t been reinstated.
We also were disappointed that they didn’t match our commitment to set up a world-leading institute to make sure that the decisions around making sure we’ve got the world’s best response to mental health, particularly for youth, was able to be managed and coordinated through that body.
Asked whether the Coalition would match Labor’s commitment to grow the mental health workforce, Ruston answered:
In relation to mental health, it’s a specialised workforce, so we want the sector to advise us how best to address this. We won’t make kneejerk policy announcements three weeks out from an election.
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Calls mount for RBA to intervene with jumbo rate cut
Odds are shortening for the Reserve Bank to cut rates by 50 basis points at its next meeting, AAP reports, as global financial turmoil weighs heavily on Australians.
Though most economists do not view an Australian recession as a realistic chance, the prospect of lower growth and higher unemployment as a result of Donald Trump’s tariffs has raised expectations of an outsized RBA cut.
Deutsche Bank today became the first major bank to tip Australia’s central bank to lower rates by half a percentage point in May.
Australia is relatively well positioned to weather the direct impact of US tariffs, but is vulnerable to a slowdown in key trading partners in Asia, especially China, said chief economist Phil O’Donaghoe.
An aggressive RBA response is appropriate, and consistent with precedent.
Markets have priced in the chance of a 50 basis point cut at 96%.
Economists Greg Jericho and Stephen Koukoulas and Greens senator Nick McKim called for the RBA to use its powers to convene an emergency meeting and cut rates immediately. McKim said:
People are hurting already, and every week of delay increases the risk of a recession which will hurt Australians even more.
Under the Reserve Bank Act, the chair of the monetary policy board – which is the central bank’s governor, Michele Bullock – may convene a meeting at any time.
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Good afternoon! Emily Wind here, I’ll be taking you through all the rest of the political action this evening.
That’s it from me today, thank you for following along on the blog with us!
There is plenty more to come, including the leaders’ first debate tonight in Sydney.
I’ll leave you in the very capable hands of Emily Wind who will bring you that debate and all other political shenanigans this afternoon.
Queensland energy minister orders review of emissions and renewables targets
Queensland’s energy minister has signalled the LNP government will amend legislation setting emissions and renewables targets.
David Janetzki gave his first big speech in government at the Queensland Energy Council on Tuesday.
He announced that the government’s new Productivity Commission will consider the state’s target of 75% by 2035 which was legislated in Labor’s Clean Economy Jobs Bill. The LNP backed that bill, but not a second which establishes a renewable energy target.
“Emissions targets must be credible to gain public confidence. And this referral will guide sound public policy and provide certainty to investors. We are committed to delivering net zero by 2050,” Janetzki said.
He was pressed on whether the government would amend or repeal the bill to amend the targets in a later press conference.
The two relevant pieces of legislation will be reviewed during the course of the year … we’ve committed to repeal the renewable energy targets. The legislation, which both contains the emissions and renewables targets, will be reviewed during the course of the year as we develop the energy roadmap.
The government will order the Productivity Commission – which has not yet had members appointed to it – to conduct the review, rather than the existing Clean Economy Expert Panel.
Janetzki also declared that Queensland’s fleet of coal fired power stations will not close in 2035 as legislated under Labor and a plant due to close in 2028 will have its life extended.
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Shadow defence minister defends 2018 comments against women in combat roles
During Peter Dutton’s press conference a bit earlier, he was asked about ex-Liberal candidate Benjamin Britton’s views on women serving in the ADF, and the views of his own shadow defence minister, Andrew Hastie, who said back in 2018 women shouldn’t be on the frontline of combat.
Dutton said you could see his record as defence minister on this issue, with women serving in any role in the defence force, and said “Andrew Hastie’s view is the same as mine”.
Does this mean Hastie’s view has changed?
A spokesperson for Hastie has told Guardian Australia in a statement:
Mr Hastie’s comments about combat roles in the Australian Defence Force were made more than seven years ago based on his own experience serving in the Special Air Service Regiment (SASR).
There is no intent to change personnel policy in the Australian Defence Force regarding combat roles. The Coalition, however, will insist on the highest physical and mental standards for those who service in our combat units, as must have the best fighting capability to defend our nation.
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Nationals leader says civil rights 'need to be put aside' to protect community
The Nationals leader, David Littleproud, says the civil rights of an individual “need to be put aside” for the safety of a community, in response to concerns over youth crime.
Crime is an issue the Coalition has put some focus on, and it was a key election issue for Queensland (Littleproud’s home state).
We have hit a tipping point where the civil rights of an individual need to be put aside for the civil rights of a community. When a community doesn’t feel safe, you have to act and you have to make sure there’s a deterrent and a consequence.
In my home state again [Queensland], I would encourage every state to do this, we’re going back to outback camps where we are rebuilding these young people with a life skill. Not putting them behind barbed wire but
sending them to remote places, giving them a skill and purpose in life.
He’s talking about a commitment of the Queensland LNP government last year to send young people deemed “at risk” of committing a criminal offence to so-called “reset camps” – a program youth advocates have condemned.
Those camps were trialled in the state a decade ago, but were shut down in 2015 by the former Labor government after a scathing report criticised their cost and effectiveness.
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Hanson-Young says Dutton ‘wolf in sheep’s clothing’ as she warns of ‘Trump-style chainsaw’ cuts if Liberals elected
Markets have been predicting more rate cuts by the RBA as global uncertainty grows.
Hanson-Young says families need support right now, and says the RBA should respond to these unprecedented economic times.
She also loops in concerns over public service cuts and says Australia “cannot be affording Donald Trump-style chainsaw” cuts to the public sector.
Let me be really clear, the wolf in sheep[’s] clothing is Peter Dutton. You cannot trust him. He says one thing one day and another thing the next. What we do know that the Liberal party if they get their chance, they will cut everything to the bone and in … these economic circumstances, in these economic times, that is the last thing that Australians want to see.
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Greens call on RBA to meet and drop rates immediately
Speaking of the Greens, they’re calling today for the Reserve Bank to call an urgent meeting to drop interest rates now, rather than when the bank next meets in May.
Senator Sarah Hanson-Young is speaking from Parliament House:
Give families the relief they need … the economy the relief it needs. This is a very serious problem. It is fuelled by the antics and terror of Donald Trump and Australia has to be upfront about that. We need the government and the RBA to be working in tandem to do everything they can.
I call on the RBA today, get off your hands, call a meeting … get this done this week.
Hanson-Young has also welcomed the government’s announcement on mental health, and says more support is needed to help young people in particular.
The Greens are still pushing the government to also add dental into medicare – which Mark Butler was asked about this morning. He said Labor is “ambitious” for better dental coverage but their focus right now is “strengthening the Medicare that we’ve had for 40 years”.
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A little less in the spotlight on the campaign trail will be the Greens, who are fighting tooth and nail to keep their three seats in Brisbane (and hope to claim more elsewhere).
So just how have the three new Greens MPs been faring in their electorates? How popular are they amongst their voters?
Our reporter Ben Smee took a ride across the electorates and spoke to some of the key players:
All is quiet …
Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton seem to have largely shut up shop for the afternoon as they prepare for their first head-to-head debate tonight. (That’s not to say the election trail will be quiet over the next few hours).
They’ve both made it through today largely unscathed:
Anthony Albanese unveiled a $1bn mental health plan and talked about how important that investment would be – though a climate protester did interrupt the press conference near its end.
Peter Dutton spruiked his fuel excise promise and turned up the heat on the economy and the risk of a recession. He was forced to faced off with more questions over his work from home policy backflip and a questionable now-ex-candidate.
The economy and cost of living will no doubt be central issues heard in the debate tonight, which will be on Sky News. But don’t worry my good free-to-air friends: Emily Wind will be blogging here for you.
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NSW health minister says doctor industrial action having impact on surgeries and other services
The NSW health minister, Ryan Park, is giving an update on the impacts of the doctors’ industrial action.
The government’s estimate is that around 3,500 doctors have so far taken industrial action, which is likely to change over different shifts in coming days. As a result, NSW health have so far cancelled 370 surgeries and closed 21 beds.
There have also been 400 outpatient clinics and services cancelled. “We are seeing impacts across the board,” Park said.
Park said the government met with the union yesterday to try resolve junior doctors’ pay issues separately, but the union did not take up the offer.
Park said the government wanted to offer a quick increase in pay as quickly as effectively as possible for junior doctors whose pay gap with counterparts in other states he acknowledged is most important as “they are not on significantly high wages.”
Park said the union did not want to separate the two issues out between junior and senior doctors’ pay.
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Civil liberties organisation alarmed NSW police officer signed non-disclosure agreement with federal police over Sydney caravan ‘fake terrorism’ plot
A civil liberties organisation has said it is “alarmed” and “deeply” concerned by yesterday’s revelations that a senior NSW police officer signed a non-disclosure agreement when told information about the “fake terrorism” caravan plot in early February.
The NSW deputy police commissioner, David Hudson, told an upper house inquiry that the officer signed the NDA when he was informed by the AFP “around the 10th February” the motivation of the “mastermind” behind Sydney’s “fake terrorism” caravan plot was to influence prosecutions. Other investigators were then informed about the mastermind’s alleged motivation on 21 February.
Monday’s revelation – which one NSW MP labelled “extraordinary” – came during the first hearing for the inquiry into when the premier, Chris Minns, and members of his cabinet knew that the caravan found laden with explosives in January on the outskirts of Sydney was not a terrorism event. Rather, state and federal police have since alleged, it was part of a conspiracy by organised crime to divert police resources and negotiate reduced sentences.
The inquiry was launched due to concerns that parliament was “misled” before controversial hate speech and anti-protest laws were passed in late February.
The NSW Council for Civil Liberties (NSWCCL) said more questions need to be answered, including whether the NDA was still in effect on 21 February when controversial legislation was rushed through parliament, and if it prevented information from being disclosed to Minns and members of his cabinet.
Tim Roberts, president of the council, said:
The NSWCCL is alarmed at the use of an NDA in this incident. It is essential to the restoration of public trust in our parliament that the inquiry gets to the bottom of whether it in any way contributed to keeping the public in the dark that the Dural caravan was a criminal hoax, not a terror attack like we were led to believe.
More on this story here:
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Following Labor’s promise to increase mental health funding by $1bn this morning: welfare advocates at the Antipoverty Centre have pointed out that data published by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows around a third of adult suicide deaths are people on just two Centrelink payments.
One in five people who die by suicide are on the jobseeker payment, while 14% are on the disability support pension.
Antipoverty Centre spokesperson and DSP recipient, Kristin O’Connell:
We know that the welfare system – through appallingly low Centrelink payments, abusive “mutual” obligations and compulsory income control – is causing widespread mental ill health and fuelling suicide. We know this because of the extraordinary number of people in distress who seek help from the Antipoverty Centre and because the statistics tell us so.
If people were not in such enormous financial distress, services would have more capacity for those of us who have complex psychosocial conditions – conditions that are also exacerbated by the fact that we are trying to survive without enough money to live.
We need Centrelink payments above the poverty line. We need “mutual” obligations and parasitic (un)employment services providers abolished. And we need the government to support our mental wellbeing by acting instead of forcing us to tell them this over and over and over.
Crisis support services can be reached 24 hours a day: Lifeline 13 11 14; Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467; Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800; MensLine Australia 1300 78 99 78; Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636
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Dutton refuses to rule out recession under his leadership
While earlier Peter Dutton said there would be a recession under a Labor government, he wouldn’t rule out that there could still be a recession under his leadership.
When asked to promise he could steer Australia away from a recession, he said:
What I can tell you for almost two years families have lived in a recession already in the country, they’ve gone backwards under this premise so when you say who’s delivered a recession, the prime minister has. The treasurer has.
He was also asked why he hasn’t visited a single proposed nuclear site, and whether that’s an indication the Coalition will drop that policy.
Dutton said he’s not going to backflip on it:
We [will] bring in the best technology in the world which is being embraced by the Labor party in the United Kingdom, China is building 29 nuclear power stations as we speak… We’ll have reliable power, cheaper power, not the three times power price we are paying at the moment.
If you need a reminder on what the nuclear policy would actually do and what it means for the climate, Graham Readfearn’s got you covered:
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Dutton faces more questions on work from home backflip
The opposition leader is asked what the costings are behind his claim that the Coalition would be able to reduce the public service by 41,000 with natural attrition and hiring freezes.
He won’t reveal the costing behind his numbers (we’re still waiting on costings behind the gas policy that was announced in the last fortnight … and the costings for that tax-free lunch policy last year … remember that?)
I’ll leave the PBO question to the appropriate time and that will be further in the campaign. This election is about how we treat Australians with the dignity they deserve and that includes making sure we spend wisely and efficiently and not in a wasteful way.
Asked further whether he still believes that getting public servants working in the office will have an economic benefit … it takes three goes for him to say:
It will have the economic benefit it does now.
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Dutton says Benjamin Britton dumped as Liberal candidate due to ‘a number of issues’
Dutton says the dumping of Liberal candidate Benjamin Britton was due to “a number of issues”.
Britton was disendorsed on Sunday by the party, who said in a statement that it was “over views expressed which were not previously disclosed and are inconsistent with the party’s position”.
There were a number of issues not just those made public in relation to the candidate and we took a decision to replace the candidate … I wish him well.
One of the controversial views aired by Britton was the claim that women should not serve in combat positions with the Australian Defence Force (ADF).
Dutton was asked about his view on that, and the views of his shadow defence minister, Andrew Hastie.
I think you saw my record as defence minister in relation to women serving in any role they want to serving in the Australian Defence Force and that would be the position under any government I lead.
Dutton says Hastie’s view “is the same” as his but Hastie told Sky News back in 2018 that female soldiers shouldn’t fight on the frontline.
At the time he said, “fighting DNA of a close combat unit is best preserved when it’s exclusively male”.
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Dutton avoids question on whether Coalition would offer stimulus package to avoid recession
Would the Coalition offer a stimulus package like we saw during Covid or during the GFC to avoid a recession?
Dutton whips straight back to Jim Chalmers’ comments yesterday.
Dutton says Chalmers “is talking about the prospect of a recession … that’s why he’s talking about 50 points reduction in interest rates.”
That’s why he’s talking about 50 points reduction in interest rates. Unless he’s doing it for political reasons. But if he believes that it’s necessary to drop interest rates by 50 points in a month’s time, he’s telling Australians that there are difficult times ahead under Labor.
Just a note here: Chalmers mentioned it yesterday in the context of what the markets are predicting – not predicting that himself (as he says every time the discussion comes up… he “won’t predict or pre-empt the Reserve Bank”).
On the actual question – Dutton says the Coalition would “live within our means” and provide support to families. (A little vague there on whether that means stimulus package or not.)
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Dutton claims Labor ‘hasn’t prepared our economy’ for a recession
Dutton says Australia is heading into recession under Labor (ie that under the Coalition government there would be no recession).
He accuses Labor of making decisions in its budgets that have made it harder for the economy to deal with “international headwinds”.
He’s asked, “is Australia heading into recession?”:
It is under Labor. The government hasn’t prepared our economy. Labor has made decisions in subsequent budgets now which make it harder for the economy to function with international head winds.
Dutton says Labor’s response to the cost-of-living crisis of a tax cut in 2026 is “out of touch” with where Australians are right now.
If we see further actions out of the US, or retaliatory action from China or other countries, then there is a very significant chance of a recession in the US, of a global recession otherwise. And those waves, huge tsunami waves, will hit our shores in no time at all.
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Dutton says treasurer ‘obviously sees a recession coming’
Petter Dutton is standing up in front of the cameras for the first time today, and it’s all cost of living and economy – after his fifth visit to a petrol station, in as many days.
Dutton claims that Jim Chalmers’ point yesterday that the markets are beginning to predict a 50-point drop in interest rates by the Reserve Bank means the recession warning bells are ringing.
The treasurer is talking about a 50=point reduction in interest rates, which means obviously he sees a recession coming for our economy. He wouldn’t be talking about 50 points as a reduction next month if he didn’t believe there was going to be a significant souring of the Australian economy on his watch.
Dutton is with his shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, who says the crash in capital markets are seeing big impacts on Australians’ assets and superannuation.
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Anne Ruston says urgent care clinics will be bulk-billed under Coalition
The shadow minister for health and aged care, Anne Ruston, has shot back at the health minster, Mark Butler, on X, after he said the Liberals would make everyone pay to go to a Medicare urgent care clinic.
Here’s what happened.
As we reported earlier in the blog, the Liberal candidate for Lyons, Susie Bower, said a Coalition government “will need to be working out” whether the clinics would be bulk-billed.
It appears she was a bit confused, because we then clarified with Ruston’s office that if the Liberals are elected the clinics will be bulk-billed and they have promised to ensure the service operates to full capacity,
But Butler then claimed on social media that the “Liberals have let slip they will make Australians pay to go to a Medicare Urgent Care Clinic … Dutton is returning to his GP tax”.
So on X, Ruston weighed in to emphatically correct the record.
She said:
This is another disgraceful lie from Labor, who are relying on scare tactics to distract from their failures.
UCCs will be bulk billed under the Coalition – That has never been in doubt. We are even rolling out more UCCs to restore bulk billing which has plummeted under Labor.
This is another disgraceful lie from Labor, who are relying on scare tactics to distract from their failures.
— Anne Ruston (@Anne_Ruston) April 8, 2025
UCCs will be bulk billed under the Coalition - That has never been in doubt. We are even rolling out more UCCs to restore bulk billing which has plummeted under Labor. https://t.co/Zg4VxVaq3A
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Coaition announces $3.8m early reading program
Henderson was in Epping to announce a $3.8m early reading program alongside the shadow minister for early education, Angie Bell, the Liberal candidate for Parramatta, Katie Mullins, and the chief executive of United Way, Clayton Noble.
The “ready to read” program would provide 12,500 children under five a book per month over four years to support early literacy development, to be rolled out in disadvantaged areas. It’s based on the Imagination Library initiative of the Dolly Parton Foundation and licensed to United Way Australia.
Henderson said the program would be a “gamechanger for families”.
We know how important reading is to support early literacy and to give them a start that they need when they start school. We do know from research that children who are not read to are six times more likely to be behind in their developmental milestones.
Asked if she was a fan of Parton, Henderson replied:
Dolly Parton? I love her music but I love her Imagination Library, and this is an absolute gamechanger for so many young children right across this country.
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Sarah Henderson accuses Labor of education ‘scare campaign’
The shadow education minister, Sarah Henderson, has said Labor’s claims that a Coalition government could disband the department of education are “absolutely false”, accusing her counterpart of launching a “scare campaign” with no foundation.
Speaking in Epping, north-west of central Sydney, on Tuesday morning, Henderson was asked whether there was waste in the department of education, as the opposition leader has flagged, and scope for hiring freezes.
She said the Coalition had made their position “very clear” that there would be “absolutely no cuts” to the public service.
This, again, is another scare campaign from Labor, which has no foundation. We are, frankly, sick of Labor’s lies. They’ve told lies about education funding. They’ve told lies about health funding. We’ve also committed to a health and education funding guarantee, one of the very first bills that will be passed under a Dutton government.
Pointed to a letter sent by the education minister, Jason Clare, to private school bodies on Monday, which warned a Peter Dutton government may attempt to “dictate” what students were taught, Henderson repeated that Labor was “telling lies” and the Coalition had committed to school funding, adding concern remained over the curriculum.
“It’s not fit for purpose … we are listening to teachers and parents and principals who say that the current curriculum is impossible to teach, so we want a best practice, internationally aligned curriculum, knowledge rich, simple, easy to teach, which advances every young Australian. And we’ll have more to say about that during the campaign.”
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Thousands of NSW doctors have walked off the job today. Our health reporter Natasha May has been down at Westmead Hospital:
Environmental group welcomes Victorian insulation announcement
In response to the news that Victoria’s Allan government is cutting the cost of installing insulation in Victorian homes, Environment Victoria’s senior climate and energy adviser, Dr Kat Lucas-Healey, said:
We welcome today’s announcement from the Allan government that will make a real difference to people’s lives. Insulation is the single biggest thing we can do to keep our homes comfortable and spend less on cooling and heating.
In a cost-of-living crisis, Victorians will welcome this announcement that will provide real help to make their homes more comfortable, cut energy bills and help the environment with affordable and effective home insulation.
Anyone who has experienced living in an uninsulated home knows what a difference adding ceiling insulation makes. It means less time running the heater or finding other ways to stay warm. The reintroduction of ceiling insulation into Victoria energy upgrades will make it that much cheaper to install, safe in the knowledge it is being installed by trained and regulated providers.
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Candidate slips up on urgent care clinics under proposed Liberal policy
Seems like there was a bit of a mix-up this morning from the Coalition on their health policy.
The Liberal candidate for Lyons, Susie Bower, said this morning on ABC radio that a Coalition government “will need to be working out” whether the urgent care clinics Labor has set up will still be bulk-billed.
We’ve since clarified with the shadow health minister’s office that if the Liberals are elected the clinics will be bulk-billed and they’ve promised to ensure the service operates to full capacity, including making sure all centres are open for the extended hours that they’re supposed to be.
So it could have been just a slip up.
But you can have a read of the exchange below – between Bower, the Labor candidate for Lyons, Rebecca White, and the host, Leon Compton:
Compton: Under the Liberal party’s policy, Susie Bower, would your urgent care clinics be offering bulk billing services to people that attend?
Bower: So that’s something that we will need to be working out. But also something else that we’re looking at in particular is X-ray. So that’s something we want to discuss.
White: That’s delivered already in Medicare.
Compton: Rebecca, just hold for one moment. Has the Liberal party made a commitment that if urgent care clinics are established under Peter Dutton, you will be able to access them with just your Medicare card?
Bower: I have -- I’m not aware that that is, um, a policy at the moment. It’s something that we’ll be looking at.
Updated
Victoria announces ceiling insulation discount to reduce energy bills and power consumption
Moving off the campaign trail for a moment…
The Victorian government will slash the cost of ceiling insulation for households in a bid to reduce energy bills.
The Jacinta Allan government announced an expansion of the state’s energy upgrades program on Tuesday morning. It estimates the discounts will help households save about $400 a year on their power bills due to insulation reducing energy consumption.
The government says almost 60% of Victorian homes have no ceiling insulation or are underinsulated.
Households with no insulation will be eligible for the first stage of the discount, which the government says will halve the average ceiling insulation install costs of $3,000 to $1,500.
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Dutton’s fifth petrol station in five days
Peter Dutton is visiting his fifth petrol station today, this time with the Liberal candidate for Werriwa, Sam Kayal.
After a tricky day yesterday, Dutton is again trying to pump up his fuel policy again with the public, you might say.
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Labor’s $1bn mental health committment lauded as ‘landmark investment’ for young people
Mental health groups and psychiatrists have welcomed the $1bn mental health commitment from Labor, calling it a “landmark investment”, particularly for young people.
Mental Health Australia says rates of mental ill-health among young people rose by 50% from 2007 to 2022, and now two in five young people experience a mental health condition in any given year.
Its CEO, Carolyn Nikoloski, says more support is necessary against the backdrop of the cost of living crisis.
This is a landmark investment that recognises the challenges the community is facing, particularly young people.
At a time when people need support the most, one in five people delayed or did not see a health professional for their mental health due to cost in 2023-24 … commitments to free and accessible care are more important than ever, and will help deliver more equitable care across our communities.
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANCP) has welcomed the additional funding for 1,200 new mental health workers.
The group says the investment will help bring the healthcare system to a point where “no Australian falls through the cracks”. RANZCP’s president, Dr Elizabeth Moore, said:
This investment will increase the number of psychiatrists, psychologists, GPs and peer workers available to the community … You can’t run a mental health system without the workforce. Clinics and hospitals are just buildings and rooms without the people at the frontlines.
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ASX rises in early trading while fears persist
Australian shares are up 0.8% in early trading this morning, as fears of a full-blown trade war keep many investors on the sidelines.
The S&P/ASX 200 was trading at 7,400 points in the opening minutes, up from yesterday’s close of 7,343.
The benchmark is still down almost 14% from its February highs.
Share markets around the world have been gripped by concerns that Donald Trump’s tariff regime, and retaliatory imposts from rival economies, will upend global economic growth.
Traders will need to weigh up Trump’s latest threat to raise his tariffs on China by an additional 50% from 9 April if Beijing doesn’t withdraw its own retaliatory tariffs of 34%.
Wall Street experienced a volatile session overnight, after speculation of a pause in the tariff program, which briefly lifted share prices, was later denied by the White House.
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Dumped Liberal candidate claims NSW division plotting to 'stab Dutton in the back'
Ben Britton – who was dumped by the Liberal party as a candidate for the NSW seat of Whitlam after some controversial views were revealed by the Guardian, has spoken out on 2GB, calling his dumping a “witch hunt”, and accusing the NSW division of stabbing Peter Dutton in the back.
Britton says he’s quit the Liberal party and will continue to run as an independent. He told Ben Fordham that he wouldn’t sign up to a faction and “wouldn’t be controlled” which he claims led to the decision.
It’s a witch hunt because they didn’t want me there. And it’s the factions within the party that didn’t want me there. It’s because I wouldn’t, you know, sign up to a faction. I wouldn’t be controlled. I wouldn’t be told what to say …
And at the end of the day, what’s occurring within the New South Wales division right now is a systematic plot from the left, the left faction working hand in glove with members of the right faction who are traitors to stab Peter Dutton in the back and sure he doesn’t get elected as the prime minister, so they can roll him as leader. That’s what’s happening.
Britton expressed controversial views, including that women should not serve in ADF combat roles amid range of controversial views.
You can read Sarah Basford-Canales’ piece on that here:
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Albanese recalls 'confronting' moment on youth mental health
Jumping back to a little earlier in the press conference, the PM got a bit emotion when talking about mental health and how he’s seen it impact those around him.
He was asked, as the father of a young man, how important it is to discuss mental health at the dinner table.
Albanese said he preferred not to discuss what he says with his son, but said generally it’s “quite clear that young men, and young women, have issues that we need to talk about more”.
He then recalled a moment when he was shocked as a young man when a friend’s niece ended up in hospital with an eating disorder. He says she nearly died:
[She] ended up in RPA with an eating disorder, and that was really confronting. I was still pretty young at the time. I haven’t seen anything like that. She almost died. She is now well, she is now well, and has children of her own. But that was really confronting.
He also remembers Charlotte, a young woman who took her own life, which her mum believes was in part due to social media. Albanese says Charlotte’s story was one of the things that led to the government taking action on social media.
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ASX to open modestly higher after Monday plunge
Australian shares are expected to open slightly higher this morning, erasing some of the steep losses triggered by Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariff regime.
Futures prices are pointing towards a 0.7% lift in the S&P/ASX 200 to around 7,400 points when the market opens.
The benchmark briefly traded under 7,200 yesterday, before closing at 7,343 points, down more than 4% on the day in the worst ASX session recorded in five years.
Fund managers told Guardian Australia they are looking for signs of a truce in the tariff tit-for-tat, especially between the US and China, to signal a recovery in equities may be on the cards.
While Trump’s new tariff regime sparked an initial sell-off across global share markets last week, plans to hit the US with retaliatory imposts from major economies, including China and the EU, have heightened risks of a global recession.
Overnight, Trump threatened to raise his tariffs on China by an additional 50% from 9 April if China doesn’t withdraw its owns retaliatory tariffs of 34% by Tuesday.
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Albanese heckled by protester during press conference
Albanese has been interrupted by a protester who shouts at the PM that his government has approved more coalmines during its term. She says:
Mr Albanese, you say you care about young people and yet since being elected your government has approved 33 new coal and gas projects…
She keeps shouting as security take her out of the building.
Patrick McGorry had earlier said climate change was one of the “megatrends” that are conspiring to make the lives and futures of young people much more challenging and pessimistic”.
Updated
Albanese says he was ‘very proud’ to host Asean as questions raised about economic pivot to China
Albanese says he wants Australia’s relationship to be strengthened further with Asean countries.
He’s asked whether the government is concerned that countries across Asia could pivot towards China, in response to the US slapping big tariffs on them. Australia hosted the Asean meeting in March last year, which Albanese says he was “very proud” to host.
I was really proud that every single leader came, no deputies, no representatives, every single leader, and that’s a direct result of the hard work that my government has done to turn those relationships around.
Our relationship with Indonesia has never been stronger, never been stronger, and the work that we’ve done there, but with other nations in ASEAN as well, and one of our responses to the decision of last Thursday will be to build … the idea of business missions, we’ve had business missions to Indonesia, to India, to Laos, to the region, to China as well, that have been important in terms of those economic relationships.
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PM addresses budget repair and recession fears
Can the PM rule out a recession?
Albanese won’t directly say yes or no, but points to all the positive signs on wages going up, growth increasing, and inflation going down.
Earlier the PM was also asked whether the government would repair the budget and the budget bottom line (that will hit more than $1tn in gross debt).
Albanese said the government has been engaging in budget repair and will continue to do so – and says that bottom line has improved by more than $200bn over Labor’s first term.
We’ve continued to see now, over the last five quarters, wages grow five quarters in a row. We have in addition to that seen tax cuts for every taxpayer dealing with cost of living relief, and we’ve seen inflation … brought down to 2.4%. It had a six in front of it when we were elected, it peaked at 7.8 in 2022 and what happened in 2022 in the leadup to that election was a March budget, which saw a massive spike in the deficit up to $78bn, not a single dollar of savings [was] in that budget.
Yesterday, Jim Chalmers and Katy Gallagher also released Treasury’s modelling on the Trump tariffs. It showed that GDP would continue to grow, but at a slower rate than if there were no tariffs in place.
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Albanese: ‘These are uncertain times’
Responding to the latest out of the US and the threat of more tariffs on China, Albanese says we are in uncertain times but the government is continuing to engage with the US.
Albanese says his government was the first to respond to the “liberation day” tariffs.
That’s why we have in advance done the work that we did over the last three years, but that’s why … we did the work in the not unsurprising announcement, although some elements of it were surprising, I’ve got to say – the Heard Island decision and Norfolk Island … some of it was rather strange. That’s the truth, but we are dealing with this in a considered, organised way.
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McGorry: Young people aren’t interested in politics, they just want to get services
Both major parties have taken a slightly different approach to mental health support, but Pat McGorry says mental health, particularly for young people, is taking a bipartisan approach.
Asked whether he thinks the Coalition might take money out of the mental health budget, McGorry says “No, I don’t think they will.”
I think the Prime Minister already mentioned that this is, generally speaking, a bipartisan achievement of our country. I’m very proud of our country that they we built this system to the extent that we have already… This announcement is very strong from the government.
Young people aren’t interested in politics, they just want to get services.
Mental health expert says recent megatrends conspiring to make futures of young people ‘much more challenging and pessimistic’
Why are young people struggling so much with mental health? McGorry says there are a lot of factors, from the cost of living to climate change.
We can’t definitively answer that question, but we do feel that megatrends in society over the last 20 or 30 years, particularly socioeconomic … injuries to young people, and I think the government’s addressing that in a number of ways – student debt, housing, housing costs, climate change – all of these mega trends are conspiring to make the lives and futures of young people much more challenging and pessimistic.
McGorry says young people are like the canary in the coalmine of society and more work needs to be done to support them and create a “healthier, stronger, cohesive” society.
Updated
Former Australian of the year and psychiatrist Patrick McGorry calls Labor’s $1bn mental health pledge a ‘breakthrough’
The mental health workforce has been a key issue in ensuring people can get the help that they need. Mark Butler (who’s already been busy doing the morning media rounds) says this announcement will help alleviate those issues.
We’ve invested in the last couple of budgets in growing the number of psychologists and other mental health workers, and today’s announcement includes 1,200 additional training places to continue to grow that psychology workforce, to find new ways in which people can get psychiatry training and to grow that peer workforce that is just so important for mental health.
Former Australian of the year and psychiatrist Patrick McGorry is also at the press conference and called the announcement a “breakthrough”:
Two out of five young people need professional help. It’s a shocking figure and the government is acting decisively now to fill that gap you’ve heard about the missing middle. It’s not just about strengthening the primary care level of Headspace. It’s also building a system that helps those young people with more complex problems get access to scientifically based care, which has been a rarity in mental health.
Updated
PM spruiks $1bn mental health pledge in Sydney
The PM is up in Ashfield in Sydney to announce the $1bn mental health pledge.
Albanese says the commitment is on top of other recent promises to the health and mental health space.
This will be critical, because we know that one in five adult Australians experience a mental health issue for a year or more, and we want to provide more support for more people in more locations, and that’s what today’s announcement will do. We will deliver 31 new and upgraded Medicare mental health centres on top of the 61 that we’re already committed to, [and] 58 new, upgraded or expanded headspace services.
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Ruston, questioned on Coalition’s policy on non-frontline public services jobs, brings up ‘scare campaigns’ about ‘things that aren’t necessarily true’
As I mentioned earlier, the Coalition will continue to get hit with questions over their public service policy backflip, despite trying to come out on the front foot with the change yesterday.
They’ve promised there will be no forced redundancies to cut the workforce by 41,000 and that it won’t impact frontline services.
But Sally Sara asks how they’ll ensure frontline workers aren’t impacted (there’s a fair bit of back and forth on this). Ruston says:
The Coalition has been very, very clear about this particular policy, that we believe that we don’t need more public servants in Canberra, but we do need more frontline workers.
Under this current government, we seen an incredible explosion in the number of non frontline public servants. Many of those and most of those are in Canberra.
Sara asks if there’s evidence of the number of non-frontline roles, and Ruston replies that the numbers are in the budget papers.
Sara pushes, asking whether the public can trust the Coalition when “we know in graphic detail, thanks particularly to the Veterans and Defence Royal Commission into suicide, that cutting back on roles and delays and poor administration in Veterans Affairs, for example, had dire consequences”.
Ruston says there have been “scare campaigns” that “have currently been running about things that aren’t necessarily true. So I would say that we need to actually look at the facts on the ground.”
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Shadow health minister says forcing private insurers to pay for private health hospitals is ‘simplistic solution’ to ‘very complex problem’
Mark Butler is reportedly putting private health insurers on notice that they will be forced to pay up to $1bn a year to private hospitals struggling to operate.
Host Sally Sara asks Ruston if the Coalition would consider doing the same. Ruston calls it a “simplistic solution”:
I think is a very simplistic solution to what is a very, very complex problem. First of all, we need to know who is going to pay for the estimated billion dollar cost of the minister’s policy sort of comments, because we want to make sure that the 14 million Australians who have just recently been hit with above-inflation premium hikes this week are not going to be the people that pay for this billion dollar-commitment.
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Anne Ruston attacks Labor over number of mental subsidised health sessions
The shadow health minister, Anne Ruston, follows Gallagher on RN Breakfast to respond to Labor’s announcement on mental health.
Ruston points out, as Dutton did earlier, that the Medicare mental health centres are a rebranded version of “head to health” centres that the previous Liberal governments established – though Labor has set up and funded more of them since coming into office.
Ruston says she welcomes the decision of Labor to “match” the opposition’s commitment to mental health but criticised them for committing to keeping the number of subsidised mental health sessions at 10 (which the opposition has promised to double).
The first thing they did when they came into government was to cut the number of Medicare subsidised mental health sessions in half, particularly for Australians with more complex and chronic mental health conditions that needed this support. Subsequently, we’ve seen their own department has given them a fail when it comes to the outcomes of that particular measure
You would not ration a medical service in any other situation in the health health sector.
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Gallagher dons pink signs over Labor-red in Canberra
Wherever you are in Australia you might have noticed there are some pollies whose corflutes don’t exactly match the colour of the party they represent (or mention the party that they’re in).
It’s certainly not the first time we’ve seen it: back in 2022 we saw Liberal candidate (now senator) Dave Sharma run with posters missing the Liberal logo; we’ve seen Labor cabinet minister Tanya Plibersek, a long time user of purple for her posters and t-shirts over red.
And Katy Gallagher has gone for pink – which host Sally Sara asks about. Gallagher takes a second to answer:
Thank you for noticing, I look, I just take… to be honest, people just tell me what the best way to put yourself out there is. But I don’t think anyone would not know that I am with the Labor party. I’ve been around for a while now, and certainly I’m very proud to be a member of the Labor party.
She has been part of the ACT Labor institution for a while, previously serving as the territory’s chief minister.
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Gallagher reiterates Australia in a good position regarding Trump tariff chaos
There will be a lot of investors and superannuation holders who will be closely watching how the market continues to respond to Trumps tariffs.
The finance minister, Katy Gallagher, says she imagines there will be some watching it with concern on RN Breakfast this morning. Yesterday she and Jim Chalmers released some modelling from the Treasury department, that showed Australia would be hit in a “modest” way, but it would be the US and China that would fact the biggest impacts to their GDP.
Gallagher reiterates the point that Australia is doing pretty ok.
I imagine people with investments [and] super will be looking at that with some level of concern. This is obviously a response to what’s been happening with the tariff decisions coming out of the US and the flow-on from that. But I would say, I think we are in a very good position here in Australia.
Asked whether the government is considering some sort of stimulus, or whether it might be up to the Reserve Bank to step in with some lower rate cuts, Gallagher says there’s already “a lot of investments” flowing into the economy. She, like Chalmers yesterday observed that the market is increasing its odds on more interest rate cuts this year (up to five), but of course she adds the age-old “I won’t predict or pre-empt what the RBA does”.
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Angus Taylor defends Coalition policy U-turns on work from home and job cuts
Angus Taylor has conceded that a proposal to ban working from home for public servants was “the wrong policy” but has accused Labor of a “scare campaign” about whom that policy would affect.
“We have obviously said that we were wrong and we have said, we have apologised for them and we’ll go forward in a different direction,” Taylor told ABC 730 last night.
Dutton performed a spectacular policy backflip on the first day of the second week of the election campaign, walking back a promise to end work from home for public servants that sparked outrage among the public, and concerns that it might prompt the private sector to also demand employees return to full-time in-person office hours.
I will say, though, Sarah [Ferguson], that it was also a very misleading campaign from Labor that has not helped the situation because they were trying to claim that we were pursuing this across the entire economy. That was not the case and, sadly, that kind of misleading campaign, that scare campaign from Labor, we are seeing elsewhere and will continue to see.
Taylor refused to answer whether the decision to drop the unpopular policy came about after it became clear that many working mothers who value the flexibility of working from home may vote against the Coalition on this issue alone. But conceded that “workplaces need flexibility”.
Taylor also commented on the second Liberal backflip of the day - a walking back of a commitment to cut 40,000 public service jobs, with the Coalition now saying it would shrink the size of the public service by attrition, not through any forced redundancies.
We have seen a growth of 41,000 in the public service and we want to see a better public service, not a bigger public service.
Asked what counted as a “frontline position”, Taylor said: “If someone’s serving veterans for instance that’s a frontline position. If someone’s working in the military, that’s a frontline position.”
“Does that mean a worker can’t be doing a useful job if they’re not sitting in a booth or on the phone dealing directly with the public. That is the only threshold for a valuable job in the public service?” asked Ferguson.
Not at all, and we haven’t said that. What we have said is we need to get the public service to the size it was when we were last in government.
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Dutton says additional subsidised mental health sessions will help ‘missing middle’ of patients
This morning Labor has promised $1bn for mental health services, including investing in more mental health workers and improving facilities.
It follows a $400m commitment for youth mental health and a promise to reinstate 20 subsidised mental health sessions. The Coalition promised those a fortnight ago during Peter Dutton’s budget reply.
Dutton tells News Breakfast that the promise to increase subsidised session from 10 to 20 would help the “missing middle” or people who have more complex needs, but not complex enough to receive care from a hospital.
When we talk about those additional 10 services, that means a young person is able to go to see their clinician on 10 more sessions, and that means that, at the clinician end, the business model is more successful for them. And that’s what the clinicians have asked for. They need more services to deal with complex matters.
There’s a rebranding, just to point out what is a fact here in relation to Labor’s announcement – the Coalition had set up 40 centres and the government has taken those and is rebranding them as part of this package.
Updated
Dutton continues to blame Labor for ‘twisting’ Coalition’s work from home policy
The woe for the Coalition over their work from home backflip isn’t over yet and Dutton is again challenged on the policy.
He tells News Breakfast he’s been clear he “supports work from home arrangements” and that the policy had just applied to public servants.
The walk-back strategy on the policy has been to apologise and blame Labor for “twisting” the policy out of context, to infer it would also relate to the private sector.
Dutton says he’s apologised and clarified the position, but points out that the prime minister has never apologised for his broken promise to cut electricity bills by $275.
Updated
Dutton says he doesn’t agree with Trump tariffs while walking back praise
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, says his comments calling Donald Trump a “shrewd operator” and a man with “gravitas” was in relation to the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza, while he doesn’t agree “at all” with Trump’s approach to tariffs.
Dutton has been tested since declaring he would have achieved a better deal with the Trump administration.
Asked on News Breakfast what he could have done this time, Dutton says the Labor government doesn’t have the “connection” with the current Trump administration that the previous Liberal government had with the first administration.
We [the Liberal government] had identified Joe Hockey’s work as ambassador was crucial in doing this – identifying people who could have an influence in the decision in and around the administration. That’s exactly what we did. This prime minister just hasn’t got any of that connection. There’s been no work done in the run-up to what was obviously being announced.
Dutton has said he would take a “carrot” over a “stick” approach to negotiations, offering more on the defence relationship with the US, which Labor has criticised, calling it a “dangerous way to go” by linking trade with defence.
Updated
NSW hospital doctors begin three-day strike
Doctors in NSW hospitals are striking for the first time this millennium, with today the first of three days of industrial action planned across the state’s hospitals.
The doctor’s union, the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation (Asmof), says the strike will not be putting patients at risk, but the state government say they have not been provided the details to be assured.
Asmof said the numbers striking have been limited based on discussions with senior staff within each hospitals’ departments to ensure safe staffing levels, which at a minimum will be the same level they are on public holidays, nights and weekends.
As a result, not all 5,000 doctors participating in the action will be walking off the job, some may also be taking other forms of action like bans on administrative duties.
The NSW minister for health, Ryan Park, says he is not assured patient safety can be maintained with this skeleton staff due to the higher demand for services during the daytime on weekdays.
Ian Lisser, Asmof NSW’s manager of industrial services, said the union will direct doctors to work if the plans appeared to leave departments with unsafe staffing levels.
The greatest number of staff who will be walking off the job will be in Sydney metropolitan hospitals – Royal Prince Alfred, St George, Westmead, Prince of Wales, Liverpool and Nepean, Lisser said.
Read more here:
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Butler says many Australians will be ‘bracing for today’ amid market turmoil
Butler is also asked about Donald Trump (of course) and the damage he’s potentially doing to the Australian economy.
The tariffs have already had a huge impact on global markets, and including on Australians’ superannuation balances, so Butler says there will be a lot of people “bracing for today with a deep sense of trepidation” to see how the market goes.
Butler says the government “got a better deal than any other country” in response to Peter Dutton’s claim he could have achieved a better outcome.
We had meetings at very high levels and no country on the planet got a better deal. What we’re dealing with now is the global reverberations from that.
Labor has been pushing for Australian products to now turn to other markets and diversify in response.
Updated
Regions and outer suburbs to benefit from free mental health services, says minister
The health minister, Mark Butler, is out doing the media rounds this morning, to sell the $1bn mental health package the government is announcing this morning.
Josh Butler has the details for you below, which Butler tells ABC News Breakfast is to build free mental health services “where people need it”, particularly in the regions and outer suburbs.
We know that the teen years and early 20s are where most disorders emerge. Services that young people feel comfortable visiting is critically important.
Asked why so much of the funding is going to Headspace and whether they’ve been able to make a dent in stopping the deterioration of mental health in young people, Butler says Labor had evaluated the service and the results were “positive”.
Well, they were evaluated fairly early in our term of government and seen to be very positive … It’s a really important service that means young people know there’s somewhere they can feel comfortable going to.
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Labor pledges $1bn for mental health
Labor will commit $1bn to a major mental health policy, including upgrading or establishing dozens of Medicare, Headspace and youth mental health centres.
The government would also put $90m towards training some 1,200 mental health workers.
Anthony Albanese will on Tuesday pledge $500m for 20 youth specialist care centres, as well as $225m for 31 new and upgrades to Medicare mental health centres, and $200m to expanding or starting 58 Headspace centres.
The youth centres will be focused on addressing what is called “the missing middle”, or complex needs that can be addressed outside hospitals – such as personality disorders, eating disorders and early psychosis.
“We will deliver $1 billion to roll out more services and locations Australians can go for free, public mental health care backed by Medicare,” Albanese said in a statement.
Whether you need short-term support or ongoing care, young or old, we will ensure that a free, mental health service backed by Medicare will be there for you and your family.
The health minister, Mark Butler, said the competing Coalition policy of doubling the number of Medicare-backed mental health sessions would “create a bottleneck that means tens of thousands of Australians get no help at all” by “piling more demand on private psychologists”.
The announcement was welcomed by mental health experts including Mental Health Australia, Headspace and Patrick McGorry of Orygen. McGorry had joined Peter Dutton in Melbourne last week when the Liberal leader announced new funding for a Headspace centre in Melton. McGorry said:
Australians will be relieved and grateful that a re-elected Albanese government will respond decisively to the youth mental health crisis by strengthening Headspace, building a network of strong specialised youth mental health centres to support all primary care providers, and expanding a diverse and skilled mental health workforce.
Updated
Good morning,
Krishani Dhanji here with you, as we follow along on this election race.
Both leaders, Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton, are in Sydney this morning, ahead of the first leaders’ debate tonight on Sky News.
We’re health focused this morning, with Labor unveiling a $1bn mental health promise which we’ll dig into the details of shortly.
And Donald Trump has threatened even more tariffs on China (and just after the latest Treasury modelling was released yesterday afternoon), we’ll no doubt be seeing plenty of reaction to that as well.
So buckle up, it’s going to be a big one (and yes – I said this yesterday, but it was true)!
