Australian news and politics recap April 22: Dutton, Albanese face off for third leaders debate
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Key Events
So who won the debate? The verdict is in
The verdict is in from Channel 9 panel on who won the debate…?
First up is 2GB’s Deb Knight, who says Peter Dutton edged it over Anthony Albanese.
“I think that they both performed very strongly. They were both very relaxed. They were both not just sticking to the talking points, but showing a bit more of humanity, which is what we wanted to encourage in this debate,” she says.
Ms Knight praised Mr Dutton for making strong and clear points and for debating with confidence.
It was “very, very close,” but he won over the PM when he needed to, she says.
Phil Coorey, the AFR’s political editor, says Mr Dutton won a number of fronts, including on the cost-of-living, where he was more precise and made points that were easier to digest.
“He had to come from further behind and he had to do better,” he says, but Mr Coorey still gives the victory to the PM by “half a percent” as Mr Dutton lost his composure at the start of the debate.
With the deciding vote, Charles Croucher, political editor at 9News rules the winner is Peter Dutton – “by a nose!”
Mr Dutton had his best of three debates tonight, he says.
“He brought his best cost of living material today and his facts down pat.”
Debate gets fiery over recession language
Both leaders have been in a spin around who would be the best economic manager.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton was asked about where he would make cuts in his “economic surgery” to restore the budget.
While responding he accused the Labor Government of trashing the budget and only having some positives to tell because they have “benefited from a variation in the commodity prices”.
“That means that the prices of iron ore and our other commodities have gone up, and that’s what’s given the government a bigger revenue than expected,” he said.
He accused them of being the biggest spending government in four decades.
“That’s what has led the Reserve Bank Governor to warn Australians and to warn this government that our home grown inflation problem is of the government’s making,” he said.
Mr Dutton went on to say: “The Prime Minister spoke before about interest rates coming back.
“They’re not looking like they’re coming back any time soon… unless they throw us into a recession.”
After his remarks, Anthony Albanese piped up at his wording.
He accused the Liberal leader of putting words in the RBA Governor’s mouth and making “extraordinary comments” on a recession.
“The leader of the Opposition just made an extraordinary comment, which exemplifies one of the things this election is about - him talking Australia down,” Mr Albanese said.
“He just talked about recession and said that was inevitable - said that was the only way the interest rates would come down.
“He verballed the Reserve Bank.”
Mr Dutton interjected and fired back: “PM let me tell you, you are loose”.
PM denies he’s lost appetite for bold reform after Voice failure
The PM denies he has lost his appetite for bold reform after he lost the Voice referendum in the first year of office.
He cites “affordable childcare”, as one of his biggest achievements.
“We want to make it universal and move forward,” he says, adding that only Labor governments do “the big reforms, universal health care through Medicare, universal superannuation and the National Disability Insurance Scheme.”
PM claims Coalition’s biggest lie is on Medicare bulk-billing
Offered the chance to refute the biggest lie that he believes the Coalition has told, the PM points to the Opposition’s Medicare bulk-billing claims.
“Peter [Dutton] uses a figure about bulk billing that takes into account the fact that Australians had to get COVID shots during the pandemic, and that boosted artificially the numbers,” he says.
“But the truth is, bulk billing was in free fall because the incoming Liberal government, the last time they won, ripped $50 billion out of the hospital system.”
“When Peter was the health minister, he tried to introduce a GP tax, which would have abolished bulk billing all together.
And when he couldn’t do that, what happened was that there was a six year freeze on the Medicare rebate, which sent bulk billing into free fall now during this campaign,” he adds.
“Peter has not said where the money is coming from for his nuclear power stations. He won’t go anywhere near them,” says the PM.
Third leaders debate heats up after election lie question from panel
The leaders have been a tit-for-tat sledging match after a spicy question from the panel at the third leaders debate.
The debate allowed leaders to critise each other over lies they’re accusing each other of telling throughout the campaign.
The debate got so tense, host and A Current Affairs host Ally Langdon has had to cut it off and move on.
“The Prime Minister, you couldn’t lie straight in bed. Honestly, this is unbelievable,” Mr Dutton said at one point in the exchange.
Dutton labels Labor’s ‘Mediscare’ campaign a lie Australians won’t fall for
The leaders have been given the opportunity to refute a lie they believe the other side has made throughout the campaign.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has been asked to go first,
He nominates Labor’s “Mediscare” campaign, which the Coalition claims will make seeing a doctor more expensive.
Mr Dutton says it has been a long-term Labor weapon and is a lie to the Australian people.
“In relation to Medicare - the whole Medicare scare campaign, which has been going on at subsequent elections for a long period of time,” he said.
“The fact is that bulk billing has plummeted under this Prime Minister.
“People can’t afford to go to the doctors because the out of pocket expense now is about $43 per person. When you’re going to the doctor. That’s a lot of money, and it’s why people are putting off going to the doctors.
“So there have been a lot of lies told by Labor over the course of this campaign, but I don’t think Australians are stupid.
“I think they see through it.”
PM dodges question on unprecedented number of soft voters
The PM dodges a question about why there are an unprecedented number of undecided voters and whether this is a failure of government.
He says we live in times where the old rules of 40 per cent of people voting Labor, 40 per cent of people voting for the Coalition, 20 per cent being up for grabs have gone.
“That reflects the changes in our economy, the changes in our society, and we recognise that.”
But he pivots to Labor’s cost of living relief, like better schools funding, strengthening Medicare, cheaper childcare, rather than answering the question directly.
PM gives his opening pitch
The Prime Minster is giving his opening statement in the debate and starts by expressing his condolences over the loss of Pope Francis.
He then launches into his campaign pitch to build Australia’s future by offering cost of living assistance and tax cuts for every taxpayer, stronger Medicare, 5 per cent deposits for people wanting to buy their first home, 20 per cent reduction in student debt.
He adds that Labor will support better schools and fairer funding for our school system.
“We can’t determine what the world throws at us, but we can determine how we respond.”
Dutton opens third leaders debate talking on cost of living
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton won the toss in the third leaders debate and has used his opening statement to declare his party is the best to help Australians with the cost of living crisis.
“At the moment, Australians, of course, are going to the polls and people have been out voting today and this election is incredibly important,” he said.
“Over the course of the last three years, people have gone through the biggest drop in living standards in any other country compared to any other country in the world.
“We need to make sure that we can get our country back on track, that we can help manage the economy, that we can reduce the costs in the economy, that we can provide a 25 cent a litre cut to fuel to help families.”
Albanese and Dutton minutes away from third leaders debate
Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton are minutes away from taking to the stage for their third televised debate.
It comes after a highly unusual day in which both leaders paused campaigning to mark the passing of Pope Francis.
Their encounter is expected to be a more sombre affair than their previous debate, given the circumstances.
The debate will air on Channel Nine from 5.30pm AEST.
Stay with us for live updates.
Peter Dutton thanks family ahead of debate
Opposition leader Peter Dutton has posted a selfie with his children ahead of the third leaders debate this evening on Nine.
Dutton is ‘losing women in modern electorates’: teal MP
Ms Chaney says she’s not surprised by the latest Newspoll data which shows female voters are abandoning Peter Dutton.
The independent MP - vying to hold onto the former blue-ribbon Perth seat of Curtin - accused the Opposition Leader of adopting a more conservative, Trumpian approach to politics.
“I don’t think a Peter Dutton led Liberal government is doing any more for women than a Scott Morrison led Liberal government did,” she said,
“There are a lot of people, women in my electorate, who don’t feel that the level of compassion or kindness that they would like to see in politics is reflected in what they see coming out of the Liberal Party, so that polling would not surprise me.
“It is not just women who think that, but I think there is a broader sense of dissatisfaction as we see Peter Dutton take the party further to the right and further to a Trump approach to politics.
“I think he is really losing women in modern electorates like mine.”
