Federal election 2025 LIVE updates: Labor spruiks legal push to protect penalty rates; Coalition to offer tax breaks for small businesses We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later. DismissSkip to sections navigationSkip to contentSkip to footer Our network Open NavigationMenu Search Site Show subsections Federal election 2025 Western Australia Show subsections Bulls N' Bears The economy Banking & finance Small business Show subsections North America Middle East South America Show subsections Western Australia Show subsections Domain Magazine Show subsections Rugby union Show subsections Tips & advice Show subsections Art & design Live reviews Show subsections Health & wellness Life & relationships Show subsections Destination guides Inspiration Reviews & advice Travel news Good Weekend Sunday Life Show subsections Super & retirement Planning & budgeting Environment Show subsections Conservation Climate change Sustainability Show subsections Video games PremiumSubscribe Today’s Paper Good Food Guide Daily Puzzles The Sydney Morning Herald Brisbane Times The Australian Financial Review Commercial Real Estate Advertisement Australia votes Federal election 2025 LIVE updates: Labor spruiks legal push to protect penalty rates; Coalition to offer tax breaks for small businesses By Millie Muroi Updated April 19, 2025 — 8.42amfirst published at 8.25am Log in, register or subscribe to save articles for later. Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size 8.42amWatch live: Dutton speaks in Sydney 8.24amLabor promises to protect weekend penalty rates 8.15amWelcome to our live coverage Hide key posts Latest posts Pinned post from 8.42am Watch live: Dutton speaks in Sydney Dutton is speaking at the Royal Easter Show. Watch live below. Latest posts Dutton says there is ‘a lot of time’ to turn fortunes around in polls By Millie Muroi Dutton has pushed back against suggestions he may be running out of time to turn his fortunes around before election day. Speaking at Sydney’s Easter Show after announcing $20 million to help refurbish and upgrade facilities at regional shows, Dutton said he was not concerned about recent polling results. “I think there’s a big disparity, as you’re seeing in some of the published poll to what we’re seeing, and I think most people are more interested, frankly, in what is going to happen in their lives if Anthony Albanese is re elected,” he said. “I also think there are a lot of Australians, frankly, who just haven’t switched their mind yet to the choices and what they’re doing on election day. So we’ve got a lot of a lot of time between now and polling day.” Dutton pats cows at Sydney Easter Show Dutton has been inspecting all the different cows at the Sydney Royal Easter Show. Everyone is eager to speak to him about their breed of cow as he gives the dazed and confused animals some pats. Farmers watch on from the sidelines as Dutton speaks to kids about how they prepare for the show. “Good luck for today,” Dutton tells one boy who has a bowl of cereal. “And enjoy your cereal,” the opposition leader adds as everyone chuckles. Labor promises to protect weekend penalty rates By Millie Muroi Labor has promised to introduce laws to protect penalty rates in awards affecting about 3 million Australian workers. In recent months, big business lobby groups in the retail, clerical and banking sectors have made applications to the Fair Work Commission to cut penalty rates of lower-paid workers from awards. Employment and workplace relations minister Murray Watt said if successful, these applications from employers can reduce the overall income of workers by thousands of dollars each year. “Penalty rates are an essential feature of minimum terms and conditions in modern awards and should not be reduced,” he said, noting Dutton had supported cuts to these rates. “Weekends are special times ... when we gather with our families, have weddings, birthdays and hold grand finals. So if you have to work during those times, we think you deserve to be rewarded for that.” Advertisement Dutton at Sydney’s Easter show It’s an early morning start here on the Dutton bus as we have arrived at Sydney’s Easter show. Today is the third day Dutton has made his way to western Sydney, highlighting how significant this area is to win the election. The show is in Homebush, which is the electorate of Reid. Labor’s Sally Sitou won the seat at the last election and the Liberals will be hoping to win it back. Welcome to our live coverage By Millie Muroi Good morning, and welcome to our live coverage of the 2025 federal election. I’m Millie Muroi, and I’ll be helming the blog today as we head into the fourth week of the campaign. After taking their foot off the pedal for Good Friday yesterday, the leaders are back on the road. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is in Sydney this morning, with Labor expected to commit to legislating penalty rates to protect the conditions of 3 million Australian workers. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton is also in Sydney, offering tax breaks for small businesses for the first three years and a $2000 tax deduction for tech upgrades. We’ll keep you up to speed with Albanese and Dutton’s latest movements, and provide news and analysis from our reporters on the campaign trail and those based in Canberra. Most Viewed in Politics Advertisement Back to top The Sydney Morning Herald Brisbane Times The Australian Financial Review Classifieds Place your ad Commercial Real Estate Contact & support Advertise with us Newsletters Accessibility guide Photo sales Purchase front pages Content licensing Work with us Terms of use Privacy policy Press Council Charter of Editorial Independence AI Editorial Guidelines Products & Services Subscription packages Subscriber FAQs Delivery status Today’s Paper Good Food Guide Daily Puzzles Copyright © 2025