We follow the leaders Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten as well as all the developments and news on the first official full day of the election campaign
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6.16am BST
This afternoon we’ve launched a piece which I’d describe at the sum of three years and several weeks intensive work. It’s an essay from me on Labor and Bill Shorten.
I wanted to cover several things: his incredible good luck, his approach to leadership (recessed), Labor’s policy shift during this term in opposition, his networks and power relationships. But the more I got into the piece the more I realised this was actually an essay about political leadership.
But viewed in another way, his recessed character is disconcerting. Shorten’s leadership style, for me, points to an essential puzzle about the man. Does Bill Shorten lead in the way he does because he genuinely believes that’s the durable model; that consensus is the only way to save politics from its worst excesses of ego and intrigue? Or is enlightened fusion, or leadership by serial conciliation, or whatever you want to call it, a convenient way to lead when the leader doesn’t actually stand for anything?
Some Labor colleagues do wonder whether policies the party will take to the coming election have come together because of Shorten, in the sense of reflecting his core values, or in a strange way, in spite of him, emerging almost by default from colleagues pitching ideas into a vacuum, with Shorten sitting like a blank canvas at the top of the table, calculating and calibrating wins and losses among colleagues, maintaining a mental spread sheet to make sure everyone gets a little bit of something.
5.24am BST
Earlier today I shared our resident numbers man, Ben Raue’s thoughts on the ten seats to watch this election. One of those seats was Cowan in WA. Like magic, today, the local member, Liberal Luke Simpkins, was able to announce today “more than $207,000” for CCTV cameras at the Kingsway Regional Sporting Complex in Madeley. You know it’s an election campaign when the funding for CCTV cameras starts hitting the deck.
5.16am BST
Sticking with Adelaide, I also like this from earlier today. This is from 5AA. How on earth are you going to pad out your campaign for 55 days Simon Birmingham?
Make sure you read through til the end.
Well the last thing Australia needs at this time is for election campaigning as usual, just as the budget last week wasn’t really a budget as usual. It’s not about a long, whole shopping list of promises and items that can be giveaways along the way, it really is about …
Well no it’s because we face an economy that’s in transition that’s facing real challenges as to how we’ll get strong economic growth into the future and that needs determination to keep taxes low and to focus on ensuring that Australian businesses are best positioned to grow into the future. And it’s because we face of course continued budget deficits that occurred when the Rudd government blew all of Australia’s savings and left us in a position with ongoing deficit and debt problems. And that means there’s not money to give away, there aren’t lots of random promises that can be made. But we do have to have a really strong and focused commitment to growing the economy, and that’s why the type of tax measures we’ve outlined which ..
Well of course there’ll be minor, new announcements over the course of the campaign, there always are. But people shouldn’t expect this to be a giveaway campaign.
5.09am BST
Some hours ago I said I would review what the treasurer Scott Morrison said on the hustings in Adelaide earlier today and get back to you.
He said nothing at all out of the ordinary, but I did like the nonchalance of just happening to be in Adelaide. First line, first answer. Just passing through (to all the marginal seats I mention).
Well, we’re all going to different parts of the country today obviously. On Saturday, I was at a chocolate factory in Penrith, I’d been in Queanbeyan prior to that and been at a real estate business in Brisbane and all of these businesses I think demonstrate the same thing. They’re all in that zone of $2m to $10m. They’re family businesses. They’re investing for their future. They’re putting people on. This is another example here in South Australia, particularly in the high-tech manufacturing area. Our defence industry plan is to ensure high-tech future jobs for South Australia in particular. But that benefit will go well beyond South Australia’s borders ...
Matt Williams has done an extraordinary job in a very short period of time. He’s a key part of our team as a Coalition, as part of the Turnbull government. Matt has been one of the driving forces behind the campaign to ensure that we secured the defence industry plan here, particularly for the submarines to be built here in South Australia. He has been a constant advocate on issues like that. But not just on the submarines. He’s also been a great advocate on the future of high-tech manufacturing here in South Australia. So that’s why I’m very pleased to be here with Matt Williams who understands that this is where the jobs come from. When Terry invests and when Austin runs a really great shop, and the workers and everyone else work together, they all benefit. A tax cut for small and medium-sized businesses affects everyone who works in those businesses. There are 100,000 businesses between $2 and $10m in turnover a year, employing 2.2 million Australians. The average size of those businesses has 22 employees. Bill Shorten thinks that’s a big multinational that doesn’t deserve a tax cut. He could not be more out of touch with what’s happening on the shop floor of this work site.
4.58am BST
More on the theme of all kinds of wrong.
The country needs sortin - not Shorten! #AustraliaNeedsSortinNotShorten #auspol #politas
4.50am BST
All kinds of wrong.
original unphotoshopped image pic.twitter.com/ZbppaTlRFs
4.44am BST
4.41am BST
Hello all from Cairns. Just following up Pat Dodson’s intervention, Labor’s position on constitutional recognition versus treaties, according to a spokesperson, is constitutional recognition should happen first, but Labor is open to a treaty in the event communities want it.
4.33am BST
Yes, Shorten campaign also on the move. No more public events today. Happy (early) days.
4.31am BST
I’m told Malcolm Turnbull has finished his public events in Brisbane (with the obvious caveat, all things liable to change without notice.) Not sure yet about Shorten, in any case, we might get a minute or two to exhale and regroup.
4.11am BST
A reader in the thread very kindly directs me to a news story on the Victorian government treaty discussion, which Pat Dodson flagged in the press conference with Bill Shorten just before. This story dates from February.
The Victorian government will begin talks to work out Australia’s first treaty with Indigenous people within weeks. A meeting with First Nations representatives, convened by the State government earlier this month, firmly rejected Constitutional recognition in favour of self-determination and a treaty. The treaty would be a legal document over Aboriginal affairs and services and addressing past injustices. It would be the first such agreement in Australia and follow similar arrangements with First Peoples in Canada, the US and New Zealand.
4.06am BST
That’s a wrap on the doorstop.
This really is kind of disconcerting.
Big Bill. Little Bill. #politiclive @murpharoo pic.twitter.com/D84xop9O3F
4.04am BST
That treaty intervention was slightly left field. I’ll see if I can chase up particulars of the Victorian scheme, which I don’t know anything about.
Questions roll on.
We’ll be announcing our NBN policy in coming weeks but it will be a good NBN policy.
3.57am BST
Shorten and Dodson are asked about native title legislation, and Dodson is then asked about a treaty.
Pat Dodson:
We know treaty is a big discussion in the community, we know constitutional recognition is a big discussion in the community. They’re not mutually exclusive matters. There is a process through the Referendum Council that’s pursuing further consultations with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples what about they want to see in the constitution or what are their basic preferences.
I think the question of settlement agreement we’ve seen in the state of Victoria, the state government engaging with the Indigenous people there around the notion of treaty and we’ll be looking at that closely and seeing how it might be something that people want to aspire to in other jurisdictions.
3.53am BST
The costing of the scholarships policy is, by the by, $4.8m over four years.
3.52am BST
Shorten is asked about his previous support for cutting taxes. He says it is a question of priorities.
Bill Shorten:
Wouldn’t it be nice to reduce taxation for people? Sure. But the point is this country can’t afford to give a $50bn handout to large companies and not properly fund our schools.
3.50am BST
Q: Will your candidate be reprimanded?
Bill Shorten:
Our policy is clear. If we’re going to talk about party discipline, I want to see if Mr Turnbull has rescued some of his ministers from lower spots on the ticket. I’m interested that Tony Abbott has to campaign like the leader of a political party because he thinks Malcolm Turnbull isn’t tough enough.
3.48am BST
Into questions now.
Q: Malcolm Turnbull says the treasury have modelled that for every one dollar of corporate tax they’ll cut will yield a $4 economic benefit. Would you dispute that? What would you say your counter proposal would drive in terms of growth?
Mr Turnbull can keep flogging his $50bn tax cut to multinationals all over Australia. I’m going to keep saying the best investment we can get in terms of taxpayer money is the education of our kids. I don’t need to have some sort of spurious debate with Mr Turnbull about the value of education, just ask every parent in Australia.
Labor’s policy is clear. We will not put the people smugglers back into business. We will not allow policy which sees the mass drowning of vulnerable people seeking to come to this country.
Unlike Mr Turnbull who has great trouble leading his party, I debated the issues upfront at the July national conference last year. Labor’s policy is clear. It is a difficult issue but one thing I will never do is make sure that the people smugglers get back into business.
Australians should be reassured – and people smugglers and the criminal syndicates on notice. Whatever happens after July 2, they’re not back in business.
3.42am BST
Shorten is flanked by Labor’s WA Senate canidate Pat Dodson.
Pat Dodson:
Today, as you know, education is a vital component to anyone that’s trying to navigate their pathways through our society. We need to be computer literate, we need to understand a whole range of things. Labor is laying that foundation down and committing itself entirely to making sure that all children, all kids around the country, get a fair go and get a fair access to the opportunities.
3.40am BST
Bill Shorten:
I want to make Australia the number one educational centre in our region when it comes to our schools and Labor has positive plans to back that in. But talking about positive plans, by contrast, Mr Turnbull, I believe, disappointed Australia yesterday. Certainly millions of parents who pay their taxes to Canberra.
There wasn’t one mention of schools in Mr Turnbull’s pitch to be re-elected prime minister. There is no plan for schools except cuts.
3.38am BST
The Labor leader has finished squatting with the kiddies in the classroom and is now out talking to journalists. He’s slicing Labor’s Gonski school funding package.
Bill Shorten:
I’m really pleased today to be announcing at this remarkable school that as part of our Gonski school funding package which we’ve announced that specifically we commit to 400 scholarships for Indigenous Australians to learn to become teachers.
3.34am BST
During that press conference the Greens leader was asked about preference arrangements in Grayndler.
Q: Anthony Albanese accuses you of doing a deal where you go neutral on the Liberal party in key seats in return for getting their preferences in seats like this?
That sounds a lot like Anthony Albanese going to the Liberal party saying: “Please preference us.” That’s what that sounds like to me like. He’s appealing to the Liberal party rank-and-file saying: “Just be careful about what they’re going to do. Please preference the Labor party ahead of the Greens.”
It is Anthony Albanese with the begging bowl out for Liberal preferences. As I said, we won’t be preferencing the Liberal party ahead of the Labor party in one seat. Our local branches will make decisions about whether they recommend preferences or not and in the end let have a debate about issues that matter.
3.25am BST
From the view up north to the view in the Sydney seat of Grayndler.
Greens leader Richard Di Natale has kicked off the first day of campaigning in the Sydney’s inner suburb of Petersham, alongside the Greens candidate for Grayndler Jim Casey. Casey’s campaign is a direct challenge to the long serving Anthony Albanese, and is a focus for the Greens to try and pick up an extra seat in the House of Representative. He’s been a firefighter for years and was the state secretary of the Fire Brigades Employees Union in NSW.
Greens leader Richard Di Natale is with the Greens Grayndler candidate Jim Casey in Petersham this morning pic.twitter.com/1o3RtMQ8gp
3.20am BST
Big sky, big Bill, the view from north Queensland.
3.18am BST
Been a brisk few hours, let’s take stock.
First stop, Cairns West state school. #politicslive @murpharoo pic.twitter.com/8Nh8MizxgK
3.06am BST
While that Dutton update was in play the treasurer was campaigning in South Australia.
Treasurer @ScottMorrisonMP visits a small business in the SA seat of Hindmarsh spruiking company tax cuts #auspols https://t.co/fJ3EFYHbhQ
3.02am BST
I think we need a few quick thoughts in the wake of that outing from Peter Dutton on the boat arrival. Let’s cut to the chase.
Nothing in election campaigns happens in a vacuum. The Coalition has a history when it comes to boats and election campaigns. The Coalition sees border protection as a traditional area of political strength, so we’ve seen since the Howard era efforts to amplify this particular issue during election campaigns, efforts which have extended beyond brutal intra-day politics to over-egging. Many of us were here, and we haven’t forgotten.
2.48am BST
Q: One final question. You mentioned before three boats in this calendar year. Do you include the vessel that arrived at Cocos Island as a turnback or an arrival?
Peter Dutton:
We count them as not a successful people smuggling venture. That’s in accord with the way that Operation Sovereign Borders has operated from day one.
I don’t have any update on that. You would have to refer it to Nauru.
2.42am BST
Q: Moments ago, you said that you’d stopped the boats. How can you say with any conviction when a boat literally arrived a week ago?
Peter Dutton:
I don’t know how long you’ve been following Operation Sovereign Borders for, but there have been a number of attempts and if we don’t have a successful attempt, that is, if the boat doesn’t arrive, then we do have success in turning those boats around, or sending people back to their country of of origin, and that was the case in relation to the latest venture. It’s been the case in relation to a number of boats before. And it will be the case in the future, if we get boat arrivals, they will be turned around where it’s safe to do so. Those people will not be settled in our country and people should hear this message very, very clearly. Please don’t accept the word of con agents that are masquerading as these people smugglers, that if you pay your money will you come to Australia. You will not. And that is the definite stance of this government and it is not going to change.
No and there’s no requirement to under the caretaker convention.
I think it will take a couple of months to sort through the legal issue.
I wouldn’t expect so, but there are a number of issues raised out of the discussions last week and those discussions will continue.
2.35am BST
On the question of today’s timing.
Q: If we had reported this last week on TripleJ, would you be holding this conference right now?
Yes – and as we’ve done before, there is, at the appropriate time, a public announcement made. But bear in mind that there are, in some of these cases ... there are difficult transfers and judgments that need to be made. This is an operation that involves military personnel as well as our own Border Force staff. And we make an announcement in relation to these matters at an appropriate time when it’s operationally sensible to do so.
2.32am BST
Dutton pushes past his own time lapse to note that Labor candidates are standing up the Labor leader Bill Shorten, on Labor’s border protection policy. Fairfax reports that the ALP candidate for the seat of Melbourne Sophie Ismail has said the following on offshore detention and turnbacks.
I have concerns about turnbacks, I don’t think they should be on the table. When people arrive by boat, and 90 per cent of them are genuine refugees, turning them back to places not signed up to the refugee convention is a problem. I think the PNG ruling obviously casts doubt on the whole situation, it’s time to review the Pacific Solution and move towards a decent and humane approach that fully complies with out international legal obligations. These people [on Manus Island] need to be processed immediately and resettled. Their indefinite detention in unsafe conditions is clearly in breach of a number of our obligations and has to end. I have grave concerns about the ability of Manus and Nauru to provide safety for these people.
Mr Shorten wants people to believe, as Kevin Rudd did, at the commencement of the 2007 campaign, that if elected, Labor would just continue the policies which had been successful in stopping the boats. And what has been demonstrated both in terms of sitting members and Labor candidates, Labor is split and divided when it comes to border protection. This is the problem that Labor’s got, because in opposition they promised they’ll stop the boats and in government, they undo the policies because of internal pressures.
2.24am BST
The immigration minister Peter Dutton has an update on the government’s operation sovereign borders policy. A vessel arrived last week near Cocos Island and twelve people on the boat we were returned to Sri Lanka on 6 May. Dutton is telling us this today on May 9, not when it happened on May 6 – anyone guess why?
2.03am BST
The government on day one has sent its two most senior people after the prime minister to South Australia, and to the NSW marginal seat of Eden Monaro.
Scott Morrison is in SA and Julie Bishop is zipping down the south coast. Tells you a little something about the contest.
1.58am BST
Mike Bowers, suffering for our blog art.
Now we are at grove juice in electorate of bonnet - with hats @murpharoo #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/nfHomGEaQg
1.57am BST
Guardian Australia’s numbers man Ben Raue has produced a piece today nominating the ten seats to watch.
Ben’s list?
1.45am BST
Meanwhile, in Brisvegas.
It's only 10:40am and we're at stop #3 for day one #ausvotes in the electorate Bonner with local MP Ross Vasta. pic.twitter.com/tXmQPpacts
1.44am BST
The Greens leader Richard Di Natale has been interviewed on the ABC this morning. Here’s a taste of that.
Q: We heard the prime minister questioned on the climate change policy. That is a key issue for you. You were up in Newcastle for the launch of this campaign at a protest. One of the stories today is the closure of a coal-fired power station at Port Augusta. Should Australians who are concerned about the future of the planet be celebrating that?
There is a few things in that, Joe. The first thing to say is it is remarkable you have got a prime minister who said he wouldn’t lead a party as committed to climate change as he was delivering the sort of response in an election campaign Tony Abbott would have been proud of, totally misunderstanding the Paris agreement which was an agreement that allowed individual countries to specify their emissions targets. Neither of the old parties is prepared to talk about the great big new coal mines they support, opening up the Adani mine and so on, which is why we were in Newcastle yesterday. We need to have a transition away from coal-fired power. We have a plan to do that through a Renew Australia pathway, tens of thousands of job sin the renewable energy sector but working through the transition.
Absolutely they are. We need to phase out dirty coal-fired power generation and replace it with renewables. But you have to manage the transition. We have a plan to look after the coal workers through those transitions. There is work to be done through the rehabilitation of existing mine sites, the same sort of skills required there but the alternative training pathway into the renewable sector. You have two old parties with no plans to manage that transition. That’s the great tragedy here. There is an economic necessity to do it, to create those jobs ...
Not at all because they are happening already. With coal exports, a massive reduction in the number of jobs. Over 10,000 jobs lost in Queensland over the last couple of years because the coal industry is in structural decline. People are already experiencing this dislocation. The question is who will manage it and who will create jobs in the new clean economy. Neither of the old parties want to talk about it. Coal is one of those issues they are completely ignoring, they are leaving the workers in the lurch. What they are doing through this coal boom they both support is signing the death warrant of the Great Barrier Reef, signing the death warrant of those precious Tasmanian forests. That impact of not acting, along withholding us back in making that clean energy transition.
There is no question Labor’s plan is better than the Liberals’ Direct Action. It won’t meet the emissions targets necessary to tackle global warming. We need to do more. We have both parties taking a billion dollars out of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. They have joined together to slash the Renewable Energy Target. They want to subsidise the fossil fuel industry to the tune of tens of billions of dollars. They both take donations from the fossil fuel sector. That is holding the country back in making the economic transition we need.
1.33am BST
The Australian’s Sarah Martin spliced together feedback from people at the Turnbull event this morning.
.@australian asked people at YMCA in Petrie what they thought of @TurnbullMalcolm's youth intern program #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/UAJwzMmadB
1.28am BST
The Bill bus is currently warming its engines in Cairns. It will roll there today, then the plan is to drive on through regional Queensland. Sometimes the leader will be on the Bill bus, sometimes it will be shadow ministers, sometimes candidates.
Hope everyone has a good mix tape.
1.24am BST
Bill Shorten’s massive head on a massive bus. pic.twitter.com/2v7AuEztnV
1.23am BST
It’s too early of course to make any significant analytical calls at all, but it’s interesting to see the government open not with any big interviews, or with a big flashy policy launch, but with selling the budget. It’s one of the consequences of calling the election in such proximity to the budget: you still have to sell the budget. If we were in a normal cycle the government would spend weeks doing just that. As we are in an election, you can open the election by doing what you were always going to do, sell the budget.
But as I noted yesterday, these periods are becoming indistinguishable from each other. It all now feels like a permanent campaign. Every day is campaign day. It’s just election campaigns have more bells and whistles and more infrastructure.
1.17am BST
Petrie, currently held by Luke Howarth, is the Coalition’s most marginal seat.
1.09am BST
I breezed over the prime minister’s opening pitch at the start of that press conference. Here it was, for the record.
The member for Petrie is doing a fantastic job. His re-election is of vital importance to the future of the nation because Luke is committed to the national economic plan for jobs and growth. We have been talking about jobs here this morning and recognising the fantastic work that HELP is doing [to get] young people into employment.
We recognise this issue of youth employment, youth unemployment, is a very challenging one, very complex. So in our national economic plan, as set out in the budget, we have a new program called Path - prepare, trial and hire. We have been discussing that with the team here. They are as excited about it as we are. That will enable job-active workers, job-active organisations like HELP to give young people the skills, a bit of hand-holding as some of you were saying, a little bit of confidence, little bit of training and find them internships so they get that experience of work, the experience of getting to work, working with others, building up their confidence that enables them to go on and realise their dreams.
1.03am BST
Watch the microphones, kids.
12.59am BST
I should have mentioned the prime minister’s press conference took place in the marginal seat of Petrie.
12.55am BST
12.54am BST
So my snap verdict on the prime minister’s first press conference on the first day of campaigning: high on wattage, low on substance.
12.52am BST
Q: Yesterday you gave quite a detailed pitch for re-election or your first election, I suppose. You didn’t once mention climate change. Was that deliberate?
Malcolm Turnbull:
It was intended to be a10-minute address, went a little bit longer as politicians often do. But climate change is very important. We have a good climate change policy. We are meeting our targets. We are meeting our 2020 targets. We will exceed them, in fact. We are well on track to meet our 2030 targets. Our plan is clear, it’s part of a global agreement reached in Paris with all the nations of the world.
It’s costed. What Bill Shorten is proposing are a set of measures which will dramatically increase the cost on all Australians. Some of his measures he does not know how much it will cost. His renewables target is extraordinarily high. He has no costings on that at all. His emissions target is a unilateral near-doubling of the level agreed to in Paris.
Absolutely not.
12.42am BST
Q: Tony Abbott says this morning he is happy to help out in any way you’d like him to in this campaign. What is it you’d like him to do?
Malcolm Turnbull widens the smile to full wattage.
He is committed to our national economic plan and he is backing it as all our members are and we look forward to every member and every candidate on our team backing our national economic plan because they know that’s the way for more jobs and more growth.
12.40am BST
Someone has told the prime minister to pump up his delivery, or perhaps the prime minister is pumped all by himself. Smiley face. Bouncing on the balls of his feet. You almost expect someone to yell “hell’s yeah.”
Turnbull is asked about the impact of the company tax cut.
Cutting business taxes, we are cutting taxes for unincorporated businesses as well, always drives investment and employment. Because you increase the return on investment. If you want to have more of something, lower the tax on it. If you want to have less of something, increase the tax. Bill Shorten wants to have less investment in Australia, can you believe that? He wants Australians to invest less and if they invest less, they’ll employ less. That’s why he is putting up the tax on capital gains, that’s why he is seeking to ban negative gearing.
12.37am BST
After a burst of jobs, growths and melons we have questions.
Q: Today’s Newspoll shows fewer than one in five voters feel better off as a result of the budget. Do you accept you have a job ahead of you to convince voters your plan is good for them?
We have an election on 2 July, we have eight weeks, we will be talking about our national economic plan every single day. Jobs and growth. Confidence. Australia, its future.
That’s what this election is about.
12.35am BST
The prime minister’s bus has stopped off in Brisbane for a media conference. Malcolm Turnbull is talking about youth jobs. And melons. He’s flanked by a bunch of young folks.
12.33am BST
Perhaps it takes a very sad live blogger to be interested in campaign corflutes, but readers know full well I am a sad live blogger. The Coalition has gone with blue (shocked, we are not) with a splash of yellow.
Backdrop for the Turnbull campaign #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/D5UPUo68Px
12.26am BST
The local reporters are giving Joyce a hard time for flying to Canberra for yesterday’s calling of the election announcement, then flying back home to Tamworth for campaigning today.
Q: Do you think flying there and back to Canberra was a waste of taxpayers’ money?
It is vitally important people clearly understand that to go with the election as the deputy prime minister, it is understandable the deputy prime minister should be with the prime minister at the start of the campaign.
Our nation is not some second rate hick nation. We are a great nation and we will respect it by making sure the proper process happens in how you start an election campaign and where the people make the choice.
12.23am BST
The deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce is speaking to reporters at the Tamworth airport. He’s had to interrupt his press conference briefly because of aircraft noise. Here’s the pitch.
Barnaby Joyce:
I’m looking forward to going into the campaign as the deputy prime minister. I’m looking forward to clearly spelling out our plan and how we will deliver jobs. It is not just rhetoric. We can show you the jobs at the processing factories in Tamworth, the new jobs coming into the area. We can show you the new houses being built, the new dams being built. We can show you the railway lines we will be laying and how this is going to take our economy forward. We can show you our plans for northern Australia. We can show you how we have an economic plan to get on top of the financial situation over the next four years and driving the deficit down to $6bn.
12.18am BST
Now the parliament has been dissolved, we are officially in the caretaker period. What’s that you ask? Take it away House of Representatives Practice, Sixth Edition.
By convention, governments ensure that important decisions are not made during the period immediately prior to a general election which would bind an incoming government and limit its freedom of action.
The conventions require a government to avoid implementing major policy initiatives, making appointments of significance or entering into major contracts or undertakings during the caretaker period, and also to avoid involving departmental employees in election activities.
12.10am BST
Hai.
12.06am BST
Just a humble backbencher, doing the do.
Meanwhile in Sydney... former PM Tony Abbott stands in the rain handing out at Manly wharf #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/TqLJkXzOfw
12.05am BST
If you think Australian politics is a quick way to madness, remember things could we worse.
Are you ready for a cabinet meeting!? pic.twitter.com/FuwSNx5VRL
12.00am BST
Official secretary to the GG reading out the proclamation to dissolve parliament #ausvotes2016 pic.twitter.com/Z83IZCeFDc
11.57pm BST
Politics has already departed Canberra for the contest but as we speak, the parliament is being dissolved downstairs.
Signing of the proclamation to dissolve parliament #ausvotes2016 pic.twitter.com/VEF5odXL09
11.53pm BST
The market Turnbull visited this morning was a great pit stop favourite of the former prime minister Tony Abbott. They are a political bunch of fruit and veg merchants in Brisbane. Abbott would routinely get a rock star greeting in that venue.
Now speaking of Abbott.
Day one of the election campaign for former prime minister Tony Abbott #Election2016 pic.twitter.com/ekmfnUKl9j
11.50pm BST
While Gabi travels north, I’m in Brisbane. Aah, the campaign trail, where politicians look at things and have brief conversations with regular people. Done well it provides useful images for the television news. One stumble, or vocal opponent or unfortunate photographic juxtaposition, and the images become the “gaffe” of the day.
Malcolm Turnbull’s first foray (one morning down, only one afternoon and 54 more days to go) went smoothly. He looked at lots of fruit and veg (especially watermelons and bananas) and chatted with produce wholesalers about his company tax plans, export opportunities, his own university job at a fruit market and - at their behest, interestingly - Senate reform.
11.46pm BST
My colleague Gabrielle Chan is travelling north with Bill Shorten for the first few days.
11.43pm BST
I gather Labor will focus on school education once the campaign touches down in Cairns later this morning.
11.35pm BST
Thanks to Bridie for battling the wall of sound, which is quite a task, and welcome good people of Politics Live to the first full day of campaigning in election 2016, it’s delightful to be with you. Let’s open today by standing very still: let’s indulge ourselves for a minute by taking stock and looking through the noise to make an observation or two about day one.
Today the campaigns are warming up for the battle ahead. Think of today as a collective stress test – do our systems work, does our sequencing work, are our rapid response operations in place, are we on the right programs with the right messages on time? Campaign headquarters have sprung into position over the weekend – the Coalition in Canberra, and Labor in Melbourne. The respective spokespeople for the campaigns: Mathias Cormann for the Coalition, and Penny Wong for Labor, have occupied the ABC’s flagship AM program to try and frame the contest. The first election ads hit the television last night. The first emails soliciting funds for the respective campaigns hit inboxes shortly after the leaders made their opening pitches yesterday. Malcolm Turnbull is already in Brisbane and Bill Shorten is bound for north Queensland and the regional seats up there.
11.29pm BST
It is 8.30am and my morning as support act is drawing to a close. It is now time for the main event, Katharine Murphy is taking the live blog for the rest of the day. Thanks to those who joined in the early hours.
11.25pm BST
Both of the leaders are in Queensland today, the first official day of the campaign. This alone tells us that Queensland is a crucial battleground but why? Here is a very good explainer from Ben Raue about why Queensland matters.
The LNP holds six seats in Queensland on margins of less than 6%, and four more on margins of 6-7%. Winning those 10 seats would bring Labor halfway to government.
11.19pm BST
A little bird has told me Tony Abbott is campaigning in his electorate in Manly this morning.
11.19pm BST
Anthony Albanese is now on the wireless on Radio National declaring Labor as the “underdogs” going into the election campaign despite the polls being so close.
He is offering an early critique of the government’s campaign performance.
This is a government in its first term, it’s a government that changed leaders and had a popular leader come in, there was a great sense of relief when Tony Abbott was deposed.
He was going to talk to the Australian people like adults, I listened to Julie Bishop’s interview, it was as if like other senior members, she was reading off cue cards.
Our task is to put up the alternative and we have been doing that, voters are rewarding Labor for being brave, we’ve been putting out costed policies, much more so than any Opposition in the past 20 years.
Why are we having this early election? Because the government doesn’t have an agenda, it doesn’t have purpose.
11.12pm BST
Malcolm Turnbull is touring an old Tony Abbott-favourite - the markets. He is in Rocklea in Brisbane and looks very excited to be there. Guardian Australia’s photographer-at-large Mike Bowers is by his side.
10.59pm BST
On Malcolm Turnbull’s trail: “we need to pay some bills first!”
Owner of consolidated fruit brad Siemon with @TurnbullMalcolm at Brisbane markets @bkjabour @murpharoo pic.twitter.com/e828RR3ssM
10.52pm BST
Deputy Liberal leader and foreign minister Julie Bishop is on Radio National being asked about the lack of the so-called “budget bounce” – the jump in the polls governments are supposed to get after delivering a budget.
How does the Coalition escape the image of being for “the big end of town”?
The fact is we have an economic plan that will boost jobs and growth across economy, that will be good for low income earners, for families, for small businesses
We keep explaining details of the plan.
Malcolm has a long term vision for future of Australia, he is looking ahead where jobs and economy will grow, and that reflects Malcolm Turnbull’s life story which is inspiring ... he is a self-made man.
10.49pm BST
A peek inside Bill Shorten’s campaign:
The Hercules plane Shorten's camp is travelling in via @gabriellechan pic.twitter.com/xLO6PvBj83
Inside the Hercules from @gabriellechan pic.twitter.com/GAkrCGNaEc
10.40pm BST
Penny Wong is asked about the threat of Nick Xenophon in her home state of South Australia, and she delivers a swift kick to the shins:
Nick knows how to do a stunt well.
10.38pm BST
Straight after the-man-on-message-Mathias there is Labor’s Penny Wong, who starts off by responding to the line that the election is a choice between a party with an economic plan (the Coalition says that is them) and a party that just wants to spend more and tax more (which is Labor in the government’s narrative).
It will be a choice about very different views about the future. The government is saying we want to give a big tax cut to big business and put the budget in a frail position. Labor says they want to invest in people, in schools, in the future.
There has been a lot of economic meandering from this government.
I’m not going to talk the economy down, but Mathias’s line that it’s better than it would be under Labor is a pretty poor line.
It is legitimate to ask if we have learned the lesson of unity but on the economy, the Labor government steered Australia through the global financial crisis. Let’s not accept the rhetoric of this government ... which is taxing and spending higher than the previous government
10.32pm BST
The finance minister, Mathias Cormann, has just been on Radio National’s AM program pushing the “do not change the course” line. He is one of the government’s best at staying on message.
Our budget is our plan for jobs and growth, of course right now the economy is in transition and needs to seccessfully transition to a strong, new, diversified economy. Labor has not planned for the economy, it just has a plan for higher taxes
The election is very close and every vote will matter and people on 2 July will have to carefully weigh decision...these are uncertain times but the government has a plan to continue to successfully transition economy
The budget is in better place than it would have been if we had kept Labor’s policies in place. There are other things that have happened, the global economy [weakening] would have happened irrespective of who was in government.
The question is whether we want to continue down this path...or whether we want to put it at risk with discredited policies of the past.
Obviously we have a very strong and credible plan when addressing climate change ... we have very credible policies. We have a strong and effectual policy when it comes to addressing climate change.
It’s an election where every vote will matter and every single Australian will have to weigh up their decision.
Malcolm Turnbull is running a very good and effective government.
10.05pm BST
There are usually changes to the front page of a newspaper between first and second editions – interesting to see how the tone evolved for the Daily Telegraph today
Interesting change to the @dailytelegraph's front page between first (L) and second (R) editions this morning. pic.twitter.com/EvHEA6XzSc
Brisbane Markets @lenoretaylor looks great in hi-vis @murpharoo @GuardianAus #politicslive #day2 #Election2016 pic.twitter.com/joDkuFJKCB
9.52pm BST
The Australian has used the day one editorial to lament the state of national discourse. Ahem.
Too often, for too long, our national debate has been superficial, personal and hyper-partisan, with politicians and the media focusing on politicking rather than policy.
Voters have endured broken promises, betrayal of trust, reform paralysis, ideological agendas, donations scandals and union corruption since 2013.
But how disappointing that Mr Morrison warned on Sunday that one of the top two issues at the election would be that Labor would not keep “stopping the boats”. Voters should be sceptical about such scare tactics and the attacks on Labor’s negative gearing plans.
Thucydides, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s favourite Athenian historian, might be a little disappointed in his student today. After all, it was Thucydides who once warned of the dangers involved when signalling battle plans: “Men who are capable of real action first make their plans and then go forward without hesitation while their enemies have still not made up their minds.”
Mr Turnbull must remind Australians of this recent Labor debacle and convince them that his aspirational alternative will best guard the nation’s prosperity.
Invariably, voters are influenced by personalities — and the two major party leaders have backgrounds at polar opposites — multi-millionaire businessman Mr Turnbull versus former union secretary Mr Shorten.
And this is where the spectre of class warfare distinctions arise.
The treatment in recent years by Coalition and Labor governments of people seeking asylum has, The Age has consistently argued, been shameful. It is a blot on a nation that prides itself on fairness, decency and opportunity, a nation that has long been enriched economically and socially by immigration, by cultural diversity.
We have also argued our governments’ policies are not only morally dubious by being harsh to the point of inhumane, they also contravene international law.
9.44pm BST
Let’s follow the leaders and see where they are and what they are up to:
Malcolm Turnbull is undertaking a three electorate sweep through Brisbane. Lenore Taylor tells me:
First flouro of the campaign- waiting for @TurnbullMalcolm at rocklea markets @bkjabour #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/igqmWwkbAz
9.28pm BST
I am quite tickled by the Australian’s choice of headline
The Australian's website front headline for story predicting Sophie Mirabella will lose again #auspol pic.twitter.com/yJ1Jxkxjl8
9.18pm BST
In Fairfax Media, former Howard-era minister Amanda Vanstone is spinning the election as a choice between two economic managers. She makes the highly personal (and strange) observation:
Turnbull made his own money. Shorten has married it. Twice.
8.50pm BST
Good morning and welcome to day 275 of the unofficial election campaign and the first full day of the official campaign. I will be guiding you through the early hours of the morning until Katharine Murphy takes the reins about 8.30am for the rest of the day. Now, to get across the headlines:
The big picture:
The question is clear: do we stay the distance with our national economic plan for jobs and growth? Or do we go back to Labor, which has no plan? Only politics. Only a recipe for more debt, more spending, more unfunded promises.
In recent weeks Mr Abbott has talked to Mr Turnbull, Christopher Pyne and George Brandis as he adjusts to the reality of remaining in parliament as a backbencher. He has made it clear he will do whatever party organisers ask, including staying away from the campaign launch if required.
Neither Turnbull nor Shorten has faced the voters as leader before. The unusually long eight-week campaign will magnify any stumbles. And both parties are yet to announce, or face intensive scrutiny, on important policies, some of which have not yet been made public and some which are still being unpicked from last week’s budget and budget speech in reply.
New faces, same style shot as 2013... pic.twitter.com/ndotzWUhT2
Yet another election with a prime minister we didn’t vote for asking us to trust him versus an Opposition Leader who helped kill off two Prime Ministers saying his party won’t do it again.
You are probably already sick of it and it’s barely started.
Whoever moonwalked across Dunrossil Dr today pls out yourself for a naming and shaming h/t @michael_abraham pic.twitter.com/7xkeKYMrfh
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