Anthony Albanese will dismiss criticism of his budget as “barely coherent noise” while pitching Labor as the only option for important structural reform when he addresses his party faithful on Sunday.
Following the successful passage of the government’s contentious tax package through parliament ahead of the winter break, the prime minister will concede there have been “bumps in the road” but vow to keep delivering change in an address to NSW Labor’s state conference.
“We are not here to occupy the space or pass the time,” the prime minister will say, arguing Labor was making the tough choices needed to fix the housing crisis.
“If you put the entirely predictable and barely coherent noise from the usual suspects to one side, one feature of the current economic debate has really stood out to me … No one has argued that the housing market was working fine the way it was.”
Albanese is set to use the address to fire back at a sustained campaign against the government’s curbing of the capital gains tax discount and negative gearing incentive, as One Nation draws level with Labor in the polls.
After NSW Premier Chris Minns warned the conference on Saturday that Labor would need to “climb Everest” to beat back the One Nation surge, Albanese will accuse his political opponents of being unable to offer solutions, labelling the Coalition and One Nation an “axis of grievance”.
The prime minister will focus on Labor’s policy delivery across education and healthcare, also sending a message to members about the potential opportunities presented by the artificial intelligence sector – a contentious policy area within the party.
Those divisions have sharpened at the NSW conference with Senator Tony Sheldon launching FAIR AI, a new Labor group that will push for stronger worker protections.
In his speech, the prime minister will argue the government needs to “act now” to set the ground rules for AI and attract international developers.
“We can secure new jobs and investment. We can build our sovereignty and resilience. And we can do it the Labor way, the Australian way without undercutting conditions, dividing communities or damaging our environment.”
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor made a competing pitch in Brisbane on Saturday, where he addressed the Liberal National Party state convention. Taylor said the Coalition parties were the only ones to provide the “strong plan and strong direction we need as a country”.
“Labor’s philosophy is that success must be taxed, success must be punished, and that’s not what we believe,” he said. “It’s a Labor Party that stands for wealth redistribution, not wealth creation … a Labor Party that wants dependent citizens, not empowered citizens.”
He attacked the government’s budget changes, its migration policy, and net zero aspirations, before turning his sights on One Nation, which has eaten into the Coalition’s traditional voter base and left the official opposition languishing in third place in the national polls.
Speaking in the home state of One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, where Liberal National Party Premier David Crisafulli has been held up as a shining light for the Coalition, Taylor said the minor party had “no direction”.
“We’ve all seen the growth of One Nation in recent times, but the truth of One Nation is it’s a one-person show, always on the edge of disruption,” he said.
He said angry and grieving people would be tempted to tear the country down, but he warned that was not the Australian way.
“We’re builders, not breakers. We’re reformers, not wreckers. We repair, rather than rip apart,” he said.
Taylor’s speech came after a bruising week defined by poor polling results and a call for Taylor to resign over his connection to besieged Catholic Schools NSW boss Dallas McInerney.
The opposition leader will spend the parliamentary break visiting battleground seats across the country to try to rebuild his party’s political fortunes.
On Saturday, he urged members to enlist their friends and neighbours to “help to save Australia”.
“The fight for our country will not be won in silence, it will be won by getting onto the field, and every one of us, and every one of us who is not here in this room today who supports the Liberal and National Party, we need them all on the field,” he said.
Nationals leader Matt Canavan swung in behind Taylor.
“Angus is exactly what our country needs right now. He’s got the capability, the integrity, the character, good nature, the background, exactly what we need to restore our economy,” Canavan told the conference. “Everyone can see that he’s a fantastic guy – one of the best guys I’ve ever met, in politics or any other field. He’s not just the man, he’s also a man with a plan.”
Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter.
Brittany Busch is a federal politics reporter for The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.
