Dutton pledges not to ‘lie my way to the Lodge’ – as it happened
Dutton tells supporters not to listen to ABC, Guardian and ‘the other hate media’
Dutton moves to close out his speech, telling his supporters not to listen to “what you have been told by the ABC, in the Guardian and the other hate media”.
Forget about that. Listen to what you hear on the doors. Listen to what people say on the pre-polling. Know in your hearts that we are a better future for our country. Know we stand up for the values that are important more than ever for families and small businesses. If we stay true to our values and have a strength of leadership, if we have the ability to be truthful with the Australian public, to stand up and to fight for what we believe in, to deliver our vision, to make Australians better off with our petrol cut, with our $1,200 back, to make sure they can buy a home, that is so important to us.
Dutton then predicts that the Coalition will be able to claim victory by 6pm on election night.
There are millions of forgotten Australians, people who are living here, in outer metropolitan areas, people who live in regional towns, they are just starting to stir and they understand their vote will count more than ever this election.
Key events
And that’s where we’ll leave today’s news blog.
But come back this evening for the leaders’ debate. We’ll be running a whole new live blog to capture all the action out of Sydney. Join us from 7.30pm.
In the meantime, here are the headlines from today:
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Anthony Albanese has announced a plan to launch a free 24/7 telehealth service under Medicare as part of the Labor Party’s final-week election pitch.
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Opposition leader Peter Dutton has talked tough on crime at a Coalition campaign rally in Melbourne where he told supporters not to listen to “hate media” such as the ABC and the Guardian.
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Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie said working holiday visas won’t be part of the Coalition’s immigration crackdown if elected.
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Former Liberal PM John Howard addressed the Mackellar campaign launch on Sydney’s northern beaches, backing Liberal candidate James Brown.
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The Bob Brown Foundation held a rally in Hobart today in support of independent candidate Peter George who is campaigning on a platform to end salmon farming in Tasmania.
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Australian Catholics have gathered in churches around Australia to commemorate the life of the late Pope Francis.
Josh Butler
So good, so good, I got you! James Brown addresses Liberal faithful in Mackellar
Going back to the Liberal launch in Mackellar, candidate James Brown was strong in his praise for John Howard, who called the former Liberal PM “the reason I joined the party”.
Brown said people in Mackellar were patriotic and “intensely proud” of being Australian, pointing to the many flagpoles in local front yards. He also spoke of his military service, and said he wanted to “start doing more for the people of Mackellar”.
The candidate spoke about cost of living and mental health support as some of his main campaign issues, backing Peter Dutton’s policies on both.
Brown praised Dutton as “the hardest working man in Australian politics” – stopping for effect, or applause, but being greeted by a pregnant pause before the audience took the cue to clap.
Brown also made a few jokes about his campaign posters being defaced with graffiti, and even covered with the image of American funk and soul singer James Brown.
A couple of images from the competing Labor and Liberal campaign rallies held earlier on Sunday.
Dutton promises he won’t ‘lie’ his way to the Lodge, will ‘bring inflation down’
Josh Butler
Peter Dutton is making a pretty standard stump speech here, talking up his housing and fuel excise policies. The final call to action is some new rhetoric though, as he makes a few promises about how he’d act as prime minister.
I give you this commitment today, I’m not going to lie my way to the Lodge. I’m going to act with honour, with decency and with integrity. I’m going to fix the economy. We’re going to bring inflation down. We’re going to make sure that we can deal with the cost of living crisis.
We are going to support families and small businesses – 30,000 small businesses have closed under this prime minister. We are going to get this economy firing again.”
As [former] prime minister Howard says, keeping our country safe and managing our economy successfullyare the two hallmarks of Liberal party leaders, and I intend to stay true to that. We can do that.
Josh Butler
Dutton says Liberals can win back Sydney seat of Mackellar
Peter Dutton says the Liberal party can claim the teal seat of Mackellar on Sydney’s northern beaches, backing his team’s record on economic management and national security.
The Liberal leader has managed to find his way to one of the affluent, formerly blue-ribbon Liberal seats which turned on Scott Morrison at the last election. Dutton has largely ignored these seats in the official campaign period, but will apparently visit a few in coming days.
Dutton is talking up his housing policy, raising concerns about migration numbers and the need to help first home buyers.
I think it’s one of the most crucial issues coming into this election, because for young Australians at the moment, they are putting off having children, and their parents are putting off retirement because they want to help their kids, either with a deposit or with a monthly repayment.
Josh Butler
John Howard speaks at Mackellar campaign event for Liberal candidate James Brown
Former Liberal PM John Howard is addressing the crowd at the Mackellar campaign launch on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, strongly backing Liberal candidate James Brown. Howard is praising Brown’s military record, including recounting visiting Brown on a tour of duty in Iraq when it was “only 54 degrees centigrade”.
Howard said Brown is the “quintessential decent Australian bloke”, and that he “is all about public service”.
He’s a man who’s given his all for the causes he’s believed in.
The former Liberal PM is now claiming Anthony Albanese is “out of his depth”, to murmurs of approval and applause from the audience.
“I don’t want my country governed for another three years by somebody who’s out of his depth,” Howard said of Albanese.
“You’ve got no hope of funding anything – whether it’s a health system, a defence policy or anything else – unless you have a productive economy. And I don’t think productivity and Anthony Albanese are close friends,” Howard continued, to laughter from the crowd.
Josh Butler
Dutton campaigns on Sydney’s northern beaches in teal Sophie Scamps’ seat
The Liberal party has hit the Howard button. Peter Dutton is in Mona Vale, on Sydney’s northern beaches in the electorate of Mackellar, for a campaign rally to reclaim the seat from ‘real’ independent MP Sophie Scamps.
The Liberal leader is joined by former PM John Howard, and deputy leader Sussan Ley, at the campaign launch for Mackellar candidate James Brown. We’re at an RSL, which is packed out with supporters and volunteers, decked in Liberal blue.
This is part of Dutton’s new push to finally visit some teal seats, which he has largely avoided in the four weeks of this campaign so far. The Liberal leader says he’s going to visit nearly 30 seats in the last week of the campaign, in a last minute blitz ahead of 3 May.
Details of final leaders’ debate released
With the fourth and final leaders debate to take place this evening on Seven on Sunday night, the exchange will be highly structured.
Here is some detail about how it will play out.
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The debate will last one hour, starting at 8.10pm.
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Both leaders will be given the chance to make an opening and closing address without interruption for one minute. There will be a 30-second countdown timer, but their microphones will not be cut if they run over.
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Both leaders will then be asked six questions, including a “rapid fire” session consisting of yes/no or short responses, and viewer questions taken from the broadcast and online audience.
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Each leader will be given one minute to respond without interruption to each of the first six questions, rotating who goes first.
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Then a four-minute debate will begin where the leaders can question each other, with Mark Riley moderating.
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At the end of questions, each leader will be given a one-minute final pitch.
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No winner will be declared as part of the debate broadcast, but the outcome will be determined in a show to follow after called The Verdict where a 60-person audience of undecided voters will review. These voters have been selected by a third-party source, Roy Morgan, and will not be involved in the debate.
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There will not be any live feedback or a worm broadcast live, however it will track reactions for the post-show response.
Healthy inflation data should help ease mortgage pain
Quarterly numbers are expected to show inflation has drifted into the Reserve Bank of Australia’s target range, setting up a chance of an interest rate cut.
Economists say an interest rate cut should be “[locked] in” with quarterly numbers to be released on Wednesday expected to show core inflation has dropped within the RBA’s range of between 2% and 3%. The RBA board next meets to consider rate changes on May 19-20.
Economists from Australia’s big four banks have all forecast that the RBA’s preferred measure of annual trimmed mean inflation will come in at either 2.8% or 2.9%.
– AAP
Bob Brown Foundation backs anti-salmon farming Tasmanian independent
The Bob Brown Foundation is holding a rally in Hobart today in support of independent candidate Peter George who is campaigning on a platform to end salmon farming in Tasmania.
Speakers include author Richard Flanagan, representatives from The Australia Institute, members of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community and George.
Ex-MP’s rare comeback bid in key marginal Adelaide seat
A marginal seat is the battleground for a former MP staging a comeback and a sitting member who is its first Labor MP since 1949.
A high-profile former member who has never lost an election is up against the first Labor member since 1949 in the intriguing battle for the South Australian seat of Boothby.
With a margin of 3.3%, the southern Adelaide seat is considered to be one of only two SA seats that could change hands this election.
Louise Miller-Frost won the seat in 2022, defeating Liberal Rachel Swift after two-term Liberal MP Nicolle Flint stepped back from politics.
Polling commissioned by AAP and modelled by YouGov puts Labor ahead on a two-party preferred basis on 52%, compared with 48% for the Liberals.
Labor has 32% of the primary vote, with the coalition on 30%t and the Greens on 14%.
Flint won the seat in 2016 and 2019, but decided not to run in 2022 because she was suffering from endometriosis.
Since then, medication has had a “miracle” impact on her health, she says, which has “never been better”, clearing the way for her to try to regain Boothby.
Boothby has a strong Liberal vote along the coast and affluent areas in the foothills and a large mortgage belt of Labor voters at its centre.
– AAP
Australian Catholics commemorate the life of Pope Francis
Moving away from politics for a moment, the late Pope Francis has been remembered as a “voice for the voiceless” and a “beacon of light” at masses held across Australia after his funeral.
Australian Catholics have gathered to commemorate the life of Pope Francis at the first local services since his funeral, remembering him as a beacon of light for a world shrouded in darkness.
The funeral for Pope Francis held at the Vatican in Rome on Saturday was attended by about 250,000 people, including world leaders and royals.
On Sunday, churches across Australia held special masses in honour of the pontiff.
At Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in Parramatta, Bishop Vincent Long Van Nguyen held a mass for the repose of the pope’s soul.
A memorial mass for Pope Francis was also celebrated at St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral in Adelaide. Archbishop Patrick O’Regan thanked the pope for being someone who “kissed the leper, washed the feet of prisoners, welcomed migrants and loved the church even when she failed”.
Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli will lead the celebration of a Solemn Pontifical Mass at St Patrick’s Cathedral on Monday afternoon.
A conclave to elect the new pope is expected to start in Rome in 10 days’ time.
– AAP
Labor just ahead in seats at heart of salmon farming fight, polling shows
Labor is ahead in two ultra-tight seats, including one at the centre of a heated salmon farming debate, polling shows a week out from the federal election.
The government has the edge in Tasmania’s ultra-marginal seat of Lyons as well as Liberal-held Braddon, shows YouGov polling commissioned by AAP.
Labor holds Lyons, a sprawling rural seat covering the island state’s centre and east, by a thin 0.9% margin.
The party threw former state leader Rebecca White into the race to replace retiring Brian Mitchell, who had represented the region since 2016.
Polling of 446 Lyons voters has Labor ahead 56-44 on a two-party-preferred basis.
The party was also ahead in Braddon 54-46 after a survey of 419 people, last week, which was modelled by YouGov.
The Liberals have pinned their hopes on mechanical engineer Mal Hingston, while Labor called in experienced senator Anne Urquhart who left the upper house role for a tilt.
Prime minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton made multiple trips to Braddon before official campaigning to show support for salmon farm workers.
The seat has been at the centre of a heated debate about the future of the aquaculture industry in Macquarie Harbour after a challenge to farming approvals by environmentalists.
– AAP
Opposition crisscrosses country in final week
As Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton prepare to face off for the final time in a leaders’ debate to be aired on Channel 7, the opposition leader will start a blitz of key seats.
Polling throughout the five-week race has consistently shown Albanese cement his lead as preferred prime minister over Dutton, as the coalition began to increasingly trail Labor on a two-party preferred basis.
The coalition needs to gain 21 seats to secure a majority, and believes this election is winnable. Dutton fights for every vote.
The election stops will include high visibility events and strong crowds as the Coalition maintains it is still in the fight, and that voters have an appetite for change.
The two leaders have already clashed three times, with two of the debates held in western Sydney, where political analysts believe the election could be decided.
– AAP
RACGP: Albanese’s 24/7 telehealth offering a ‘positive step forward’
The Royal Australian College of GPs has approved the Albanese government’s promise of a new 24/7 telehealth line.
In a statement, RACGP president, Dr Michael Wright, says it is “essential that this service integrates with existing general practice care”.
This is a positive step forward that will help more people access care when they need it. It will help more GPs across Australia provide after-hours care on weekends and during the week.
After-hours care is a key part of what GPs do in communities nation-wide, every day, and this announcement recognises that. So, we look forward to understanding the detail of this program, and working with the government to make sure that general practice is consulted every step of the way.
GPs and practice teams are needed by their communities more than ever before. There’s no substitute for the high-quality care you get from a specialist GP who knows you and your history. We’re the ones with the training and expertise to make sure that patients have all their health needs properly seen to.
Bowen indulges in some social media mockery
Climate change and energy minister Chris Bowen has seized on Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie’s reaction to a question from David Speers about the Coalition’s plan to lower emissions.
Bowen has posted on social media a clip of McKenzie laughing in response to the question, adding a one word comment: “unbelievable”.
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Analysis: Peter Dutton’s team has looted economic policies used to fight past wars – and it’s not working in 2025
As the economy turns, the Coalition finds itself out of step with the electorate.
Committed to a strategy of reminding Australians about the past three miserable years, Peter Dutton has overlearned the lessons of 2024, when voters angry at the soaring cost of living toppled a swathe of governments.
If Anthony Albanese was unlucky to inherit the most inflationary economy in a generation, the tide has turned at the right moment as he battles for a second term.
The surest marker of this sea change was the Reserve Bank of Australia’s interest rate cut on 18 February – the first in more than four years and confirmation that the battle to contain inflation was largely won.
The mortgage relief may have been minor but the change in psychology has been profound.
It’s a major reason why the killer question, “Are you better off now than three years ago?” has lost some of its potency in 2025.
For more on this, read the full analysis here:
McKenzie cites UNSW report about availability of water for nuclear power plants
Going back to Bridget McKenzie’s interview on ABC Insiders this morning, the Nationals senator was asked by ABC Insiders host David Speers about whether there would be enough water for the Loy Yang power plant in Gippsland.
McKenzie cited a University of New South Wales report that examined the availability of water for use in nuclear power generation.
Well, David, University of NSW has done a study into this. It says our water capacity is not a constraint in developing a nuclear industry here in Australia. They are the experts.
McKenzie appeared to refer to the headline of an ABC news report on the study that read: “Enough water for nuclear reactors in NSW but scientists worry about wildlife.”
The text of the story makes clear the study was looking explicitly at sites proposed for New South Wales at Liddell in the Hunter Valley and Mount Piper near Lithgow.
PM says Australians can choose between ‘building’ a future or a ‘nasty’ reboot of the past
Albanese closes out the speech by clearly spelling out how he sees the choice on voting day.
In the coming days Australians have a real choice, a choice between seizing the opportunities before us all letting the world overtake us. Between reaching for Australia’s extraordinary potential or cutting into it.
A choice between building Australia’s future or a darker, meaner, nasty reboot of the past. A choice between going forward or getting dragged backwards, a choice between backing Australians or stacking Australians.
