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By MAX AITCHISON, POLITICAL REPORTER FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA Published: 23:35 BST, 13 April 2025 | Updated: 08:19 BST, 14 April 2025
Labor and the Coalition both officially launched their campaigns on Sunday, with major promises to splash the cash.Anthony Albanese pledged to introduce a $1,000 instant tax deduction if re-elected, while Peter Dutton unveiled a radical – and controversial – policy to allow first-time home buyers of newly-built properties to deduct interest payments on the first $650,000 of their mortgages. The Prime Minister is hitting the ground in Adelaide, while Opposition Leader is campaigning in his own backyard of Brisbane. Follow Daily Mail Australia’s live campaign coverage. Harry Dutton, 20, takes over dad’s press conferenceHarry Dutton, the Opposition Leader’s 20-year-old son who is training to become a carpenter, joined his dad on the campaign trail in Brisbane on Monday morning.The apprentice tradie proved he could follow in his father’s footsteps, if he ever wanted to down tools later in his career, when he briefly fronted a press conference.‘It’s been great being on the campaign trail with him,’ Mr Dutton Jr. (pictured with his father, below) told reporters about his dad.‘Going all over and seeing all different people and all different industries,’ he added.He revealed he and his sister Rebecca, 23, as well as a lot of their friends, were desperately saving up for a house.‘But as you probably heard, it’s almost impossible to get in – in the current state,’ he said.‘We’re saving like mad, but it doesn’t look like we’ll get there in the near future. But we’d love that to change.’After Harry gave his answer, a reporter shouted a question for ‘Mr Dutton’.The Opposition Leader, retuning to the podium, corrected them: ‘Mr Dutton Sr. You confused him.’Mr Dutton was asked repeatedly whether he would help his son buy a property – but ignored the question each time.’You’re doing pretty well, yourself. Why won’t you support him a bit and give him a bit of help with getting his house?’ a reporter asked.But Mr Dutton wasn’t having any of it.’I haven’t finished the excellent points I was making,’ he said. ‘The next point as to why people should vote Liberal is we can manage the economy well. Labor always trashes the economy, which is why we’ve had almost two years of households going backwards under this government.’Australians can’t afford three more years of Labor.’It marks the second time Harry has made an appearance during the campaign.On Sky News’ Paul Murray Live last month, the Opposition Leader referenced his son who was sitting in the audience.’Harry will be embarrassed to hear me call him out, but Harry’s just gone into his second year of apprenticeship as a carpenter,’ he said.’He’s got a boost in his pay, which means he can start to pay some board at home. I’m not holding my breath for that, but I’ll see.’Mr Dutton has, throughout his career, owned a veritable property empire. It has been estimated that he has made $30 million from property transactions over 35 years. However, he has unloaded all of his properties over the past few years apart from his 68-hectare family farm in Dayboro, Queensland. Channel 7 to host third and final debateThe third leaders’ debate has been schedule for Sunday, April 27.Channel 7 will host the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton less than a week before Aussies head to the polls on May 3.The second debate, airing on ABC News and moderated by David Speers, will take place on Wednesday, April 16 at 8pm (AEST).Grim warning about Dutton’s housing policyAlbo vs Plibersek drama rumbles onEnvironment Minister Tanya Plibersek was taking the fight to peter Dutton’s backyard on Monday as she campaigned in the Opposition’s Brisbane seat of Dickson.Ms Plibersek joined the Labor candidate Ali France, who lost out to Mr Dutton in 2022 with a margin of just 1.7 per cent.But any hope of staying focussed on local issues was dispelled when reporters peppered the Environment Minister about her frosty encounter with the Prime Minister on Sunday.She laughed it off, describing the encounter as ‘nonsense’.But pressed on whether it ‘felt awkward’ she said it was a common occurrence – and she was just unlucky to have it caught on film.‘Well, I think everybody’s had an awkward moment when they’re going in like that but not everybody has a camera crew trailing them,’ she added.She also dismissed a question about whether Labor HQ had edited a transcript of her interview on Sunrise this morning, where she claimed they air kissed for hygiene reasons.‘I’m out campaigning. I’m not reading transcripts,’ she said, according to the ABC.How Lib candidate ended up on hostel ‘blacklist’Former PM snubbed at campaign launch eventMalcolm Turnbull has revealed he was not invited to the Liberal party’s campaign launch in western Sydney on Sunday.‘I was actually doing some work in the garden with one of my grand-daughters,’ he told ABC Radio Sydney.Asked directly if he was invited, the former PM said ‘no’.‘But I wouldn’t have gone,’ Mr Turnbull insisted.‘Look, if I’d gone there somebody would’ve said to me, “Do you agree with the Coalition’s policy on nuclear power?” and I would’ve had to say “No, I think it’s nonsense”.‘I’m not going to go and pretend that I agree with a whole lot of things that I don’t.’It may be that recent explosive comments about US President Donald Trump may have prompted the Liberal Party to keep their distance from their former leader.Jacinta Price picture prompts Liberal headacheEconomist savages both leaders’ housing policiesFirst-home buyers are back in the eye of the storm as the major parties tout differing policies to give young people a leg-up.Hopeful homeowners would only need to save up a five per cent deposit and houses will be built specifically for first-time buyers under Labor’s plan.The Coalition will let first-time buyers deduct interest payments against their taxable incomes on the first $650,000 of a mortgage on newly-built homes.Announcements pitched at Australia’s younger generations have featured prominently in federal elections in recent times as rates of home ownership have been on the decline.Independent economist Saul Eslake said both announcements from the major parties at their official campaign launches would push up house prices.’This is a bad day for aspiring home-buyers,’ Mr Eslake said.The economist was particularly sceptical of the Coalition’s proposed saving of about $12,000 with a taxable income of $120,000 under its proposal.’They will take out bigger mortgages,’ he said.’And so house prices will go up.Any policy allowing Australians to spend more on housing than they otherwise would leads to more expensive housing and fewer people entering the market, the economist explained.Labor’s five per cent deposits also falls into that category, though Mr Eslake said it would be less of a burden on the federal budget.Building new homes for first-time buyers would help ‘at the margins’, he said, assisting to boost all-important supply.Coalition drops rap diss trackFrom podcasts to TikToks, we’ve seen almost every possible medium exploited by both major parties this campaign.But now the Liberal party has gone a step further by dropping a studio-produced rap diss track called ‘Leaving Labor’, they have described as ‘Kendrick meeting Question Time’.The minute-long beef piece focusses on the cost of living crisis and includes lines such as ‘ain’t the way it’s supposed to be / the money we’re spending on groceries / I just wanna buy some eggs and cheese / $100: you kidding me?’The chorus states: ‘Bring them prices down / This is what we need / Cos Albo’s gotta leave.’It is being billed by Coalition HQ as a ‘serious message in a new format’.’This drops harder and faster than interest rates under Labor,’ they claim.You can listen to the song on SoundCloud and judge for yourself. Albo silent on Plibersek’s future The Prime Minister has refused to say whether Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek will stay in her portfolio if Labor is re-elected for a second term.’Will you commit to keeping Ms Plibersek in the environment portfolio for the next three years, assuming you’re re-elected?,’ a reporter asked the PM in Adelaide (pictured, below).’You know what I’ll commit to? Trying to win this election,’ Mr Albanese responded.’Tanya Plibersek has been a friend for a long time.’We live in neighbouring seats. We’re good mates and she’s doing a fantastic job.’It comes after their awkward air kiss at Sunday’s official campaign launch set tongues wagging about their long-standing rivalry.Jacqui Lambie slams both leadersJacqui Lambie has poked fun at both Labor and the Coalition’s housing policies.Both parties tried to outdo one another on Sunday when they officially launched their campaigns with a range of promises designed to lure voters struggling with the cost of living crisis.Labor promised a guaranteed five per cent deposit scheme for first homebuyers and a $1,000 standard tax deduction for work expenses.Meanwhile, the Coalition pledged a $1,200 tax offset and a proposal to make mortgage payments tax deductible for some first-time homebuyers.But the big-spending promises cut little ice with Senator Lambie, as she held up a blank piece of paper to symbolise the lack of detail in them (pictured, below).’These two leaders’ both Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton this morning become as loose as a bloody goose,’ she told Today.’How about you turn the first lot of soil on the first 50 or 60,000 homes that you’ve promised.’What Albo’s hand writing says about him Air kiss was for hygiene reasons, claims PlibersekTanya Plibersek has laughed off any suggestion that her awkward air kiss with the Prime Minister was a symptom of their long-standing rivalry.As Anthony Albanese approached the podium with his fiancée Jodie Haydon for his campaign launch speech in Perth on Sunday, he soaked up the adulation of the party faithful and firmly shook hands with his ministers.The seemingly frosty exchange was noticed by many spectators and seemingly confirmed tensions between the pair were the reason for Ms Plibersek’s recent absence from other campaign events, aside from one appearance at Paddy’s Markets in Sydney.But now Ms Plibersek has given her own version of events, claiming the air kiss was for hygiene reasons.’I reckon we should still all be elbow-bumping. During an election campaign, the last thing you want is to catch a cold,’ Ms Plibersek told Sunrise on Monday morning.’So that’s on me. I should’ve done the elbow bump I reckon.’Despite Mr Albanese demoting her from education to environments and overruling some of her decisions, Ms Plibersek insisted the pair were ‘buddies’.The Pirme Minister was asked about the awkward exchange in Adelaide on Monday morning.’Tanya Plibersek has been a friend for a long time,’ Mr Albanese told reporters.’We live in neighbouring seats. We’re good mates and she’s doing a fantastic job.’But they both have a long and uneasy history.You can read more about their tense relationship here:
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LIVE: Election 2025 – Peter Dutton’s tradie son, 20, takes over his dad’s press conference with a dire warning for the nation
