Polling Shows Coalition Falls Further Behind Labour

The latest Newspoll showed that the primary vote for the Liberal-National Coalition has dipped 3pp to 34%, its worst level since 2018, while the main opposition Labour Party's primary vote rose 3pp to 41%. On the two-party preferred basis, Labour leads the Coalition by 56% to 44% and should the results of the poll be replicated in the election, Labour could govern with a comfortable majority in the lower house. The survey showed growing dissatisfaction with PM Morrison's leadership, as his net approval rating tumbled 11pp. Respondents also said for the first time that Labour would be better at coordinating Australia's Covid-19 response than the Coalition government.

• Treasurer Frydenberg did a round of morning interviews, throwing his weight behind PM Morrison despite the dismal polling results. He played them down noting that "in politics, there is only one poll that counts. And that is on election day."
• Labour leader Anthony Albanese told 3AW radio that he could raise taxes for multinational companies if made PM, stressing that Labour are not proposing any new taxes for average Australians. While Scott Morrison remains the preferred Prime Minister, Albanese now trails him by an exceedingly thin margin.