- Albanese wants fixed four-year terms
- Changing term length would require referendum
Anthony Albanese has repeated calls for four-year parliamentary terms as he faced questions about the date of the next election.
Mr Albanese was asked by Sunrise host Michael Usher about when he plans to hold the next election on Tuesday morning.
‘It will be May 17 or before,’ the Prime Minister responded.
‘We should have four-year fixed terms, like they do in most states and territories, to avoid these games.’
But any change to how long MPs serve in parliament would require a successful referendum.
The next federal election is due to be held by May, but can be held earlier should the prime minister want to go to the polls sooner.
Anthony Albanese has called for four-year parliamentary terms as he faced questions about the date of the next election on Sunrise
Mr Albanese has previously said he wanted to serve his full term as prime minister, but can choose any Saturday between now and May 17.
Hinting at an early election, he is already touring battleground electorates in Queensland, the Northern Territory, and Western Australia.
He will begin Tuesday in Rockhampton, on Queensland’s central coast, before heading north to Cairns and west to Mount Isa.
Cost-of-living pressures will be a key issue during the election, as pain felt by households whittles down the government’s approval ratings.
Fresh polling released by Roy Morgan shows if an election was held now, the coalition would win with a two-party preferred vote of 53 per cent to Labor’s 47 per cent.
Usher confronted Mr Albanese with some stark figures about the economy under his government during the interview on Sunrise.
‘You’re going to have to pull some fast levers to convince the electorate that they’re feeling better off because most people feel like they’re going backwards.’
Mr Albanese said people would have been worse off under the coalition.
‘Under the Coalition, we will go backwards, under Peter Dutton and things will cost more.
‘The only plan they have put forward is for nuclear reactors that will cost $1,200 for every Australian.’
