Australian Opposition Leader Peter Dutton Admits Election Pledges Were a ‘Mistake’

Australia’s main opposition party has withdrawn its election promises to end remote work for public servants and to dismiss thousands of government employees, amid weakening support in voter polls.

Peter Dutton, head of the centre-right Liberal Party, admitted on Monday that these proposals were a “mistake.” He aimed to ensure that taxpayer funds are spent efficiently, given the hard work of those whose money is used for paying wages, Dutton stated in an interview on Channel Nine.

Originally, Dutton had committed to requiring government employees to work full-time in offices and to reducing 41,000 positions from the public sector.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who called a national election for May 3, questioned the credibility of his opponent’s reversal, asserting that Dutton’s aims to undermine work rights reflect his lack of understanding of modern families and the critical role of both women and men in managing their households.

Albanese’s centre-left Labor Party has narrowed the gap on Dutton’s Liberal Party-led coalition in recent polls, with the contest remaining tight.

The latest Newspoll survey, released on Sunday, shows Labor leading the Coalition 52-48 in a two-party matchup, a one-percentage-point increase from the previous poll.

The election campaign has been dominated by cost-of-living issues, notably the severe housing affordability crisis.

Although Labor or the Coalition is almost guaranteed to receive the most votes, the polls suggest a high likelihood of a hung parliament, a situation where no party has a majority.

Australia previously experienced a hung parliament in 2010, when former Prime Minister Julia Gillard secured the backing of the Australian Greens and three independent MPs to form a minority government.