Albanese to address Labor conference; Trump says US will ‘destroy’ Iranian civilian targets
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will prepare his bid for a third term with the promise of more expensive cost-of-living measures to address the financial stress that has fueled One Nation’s rise, while expanding a scheme to pay healthcare workers while they work.
But Labor ministers are playing down the prospect of a tax on gas exports ahead of a fight over the popular proposal at the national conference; This indicates tension within Labor ranks over how aggressively Albanians are pursuing populist aims.
In a speech to Labor loyalists on Thursday that Albanese will use to frame the election’s battle lines, the prime minister will invoke 135-year-old Labor tradition on practical responses to raise workers’ living standards rather than “rage against a system without a plan to fix it”.
Albanese will say that “people have been given every reason to feel that the economy is not working for them” as he seeks to boost the government’s political fortunes and meet pessimistic voters where they are.
“This is deeper than sentiment; it’s a reality facing people,” he will say, according to a preliminary version of his speech, noting that he is navigating “rough seas” after a series of economic shocks and oil crises caused by the Middle East war.
Read more: PM draws election battle lines with One Nation, promises easing cost of living
