What to Expect If Anthony Albanese Wins Tomorrow's Election—and His Promised Cash Boost

• Workers promising to cut down student debt

Anthony Albanese has turned lowering student debt and assisting every first-time home buyer into the cornerstones of his re-election campaign.

He has set aside $16billion to slash student debt by 20 per cent and is vowing to enable all first-home buyers get a mortgage with a 5 per cent deposit.

However, the Prime Minister is encountering strong opposition from the Opposition Leader. Peter Dutton Who aims to eliminate student debt relief, provide free Technical and Further Education (TAFE), and offer incentives for purchasing an electric vehicle valued at up to $91,400?

Mr. Albanese finds himself in an uncommon situation as a Labor party leader advocating for lasting income tax reductions, which the Liberal Party opposes.

The Labor party is opposed to the opposition's proposal to reduce the fuel excise by half for a temporary period.

If he gets re-elected on Saturday, Mr. Albanese will become the first Australian prime minister Since John Howard in 2004 to have secured victory in at least two elections.

He would also be the first Labor leader to win re-election since Bob Hawke in 1990, and just the third ALP prime minister post-Federation to secure consecutive election victories, joining the ranks of Gough Whitlam from half a century earlier.

This is how the frontrunner of the opinion polls intends to create history this Saturday and accomplish what previous Labor Prime Ministers Post-War era couldn’t manage—Ben Chifley, Paul Keating, Kevin Rudd, and Julia Gillard were unable to do so.

Student debt

Mr. Albanese, who participated as a student activist at the University of Sydney back in the early '80s, is now concentrating on attracting young voters through his proposed $16 billion initiative aimed at decreasing student debt by 20 percent—or roughly $5,520 off the typical amount owed under the Higher Education Contribution Scheme.

The Labor party intends to raise the repayment threshold from $54,000 to $67,000. According to their calculations, this change would allow someone making $70,000 annually to save approximately $1,300 per year in repayments.

In addition to this, there is another $3 billion initiative aimed at decreasing student debt by tying the interest rate on that debt to either the wage price index or the consumer price index, with the lower of the two being applied.

Mr. Dutton has pledged to eliminate Labor's student debt relief policy should the Coalition secure victory in Saturday’s election, contending that it is unjust towards tradespeople who did not pursue higher education.

The Coalition is similarly committed to eliminating free TAFE, a Labor initiative launched in January 2023, due to the fact that merely 100,000 individuals have finished these programs.

Instead, it promises to resurrect a system of 12 Australian Technical Colleges, which were operational during John Howard’s tenure as prime minister, with an investment of $260 million.

First-home buyers

The Prime Minister aims to solidify the youth vote by proposing a scheme that ensures all first-time homebuyers can enter the property market with just a 5% deposit, irrespective of their earnings.

"I am eager to assist young individuals and those purchasing their first homes in realizing the aspiration of becoming homeowners," he stated.

The remaining 80% of the purchase price would be covered by taxpayers, thereby exempting them from bearing the expense of lenders' mortgage insurance.

In contrast to the current Home Guarantee Scheme, these price caps are significantly higher and align with the median house values for each capital city as per recent CoreLogic reports.

To put it differently, starting in January 2026, a first-time homebuyer will have the opportunity to purchase an average-priced house in their desired city rather than being limited to only smaller units or properties located in distant suburban areas.

That means a first home buyer would be able to purchase a Sydney house for $1.5million - the city's median price - instead of $900,000 under the existing limit.

The cap in Brisbane has been raised to $1 million, up from $700,000.

In Melbourne, the price has dropped to $950,000, indicating the decrease in property values across Victoria over the last year; however, this is up from the previous figure of $800,000.

Perth’s cap stands at $850,000, an increase from $600,000, whereas in Adelaide, it is set at $900,000, also raised from $600,000.

In Hobart, the threshold has been raised to $700,000 from $600,000, whereas in Canberra it will now stand at $1 million, an increase from $750,000. The limit for the Northern Territory remains constant at $600,000.

Tax cuts

Politicians from both parties are at odds with each other regarding their respective tax reduction strategies.

The Labor party has stated that they will not support the Coalition's $6 billion proposal to reduce the fuel excise by half to 25.4 cents per liter for one year starting in July.

Rather than what was initially proposed, the Albanese government is suggesting an annual income tax reduction of $268 as part of a comprehensive $17 billion scheme.

Starting in July 2026, individuals with an income between $18,201 and $45,000 will experience a reduction in their marginal tax rate from 16 percent to 15 percent.

A year later, in July 2027, this figure would decrease to 14 percent, resulting in a total relief of $536 spread across two years. This occurred as tax reductions initially aimed at part-time employees extended their benefits to all others.

The opposition has criticized it as being equivalent to only $5 per week or 70 cents daily in assistance and is instead suggesting a single payment of up to $1,200 for 10 million Australians with incomes up to $144,000 during the fiscal year 2025-26, which would total $10 billion.

Tax deductions

Taxpayers could receive an immediate tax reduction of $1000, which would directly offset job-related costs.

The reform will enable taxpayers to opt for a $1,000 immediate tax break rather than claiming separate employment-related costs.

Taxpayers don't have to keep track of receipts for deductions under $1,000 and can avoid the expenses associated with hiring professional tax preparers.

Medicare

Should Labor secure re-election, Mr. Albanese has pledged $204.5 million for launching 1800MEDICARE, a nationwide round-the-clock healthcare advisory service along with after-hours general practitioner telehealth support, supported by Medicare.

Starting from January 1, individuals calling down under will get through to a certified nurse who can offer guidance or direct them to additional healthcare services.

Individuals requiring immediate general practitioner services for emergencies such as obtaining a prescription or addressing brief illnesses or injuries can access a complimentary telehealth appointment with a GP from 6 pm to 8 am.

Labor stated this could stop approximately 250,000 Australians from needing to visit an emergency department unnecessarily each year.

Penalty rates

An elected Albanese Labor government will introduce laws to safeguard penalty rates in awards.

Electric cars

The electric vehicle initiatives launched by Labor in 2022 are encountering opposition from their rivals, who are striving to abolish these policies.

According to the present regulations, electric and hydrogen-powered cars aren’t subject to fringe benefits tax provided they stay within the luxury car tax limit of $91,387 when bought via a salary packaging arrangement.

This allowed individuals purchasing an electric vehicle to include all expenses related to a novated lease as well as operational costs, providing them with a tax advantage.

For an electric vehicle priced at approximately $45,000, our estimation shows that a worker would incur additional annual costs of about $3,500 without the tax break.

The Coalition is similarly committed to eliminating Labor's New Vehicle Efficiency Standard, which aimed to cut new car emissions by 59 percent within four years, with implementation set to begin in July.

Automobile manufacturers selling a high number of gasoline or diesel vehicles would face penalties, potentially leading to an increase in the cost of a Ford Ranger pickup by approximately $6,150, according to modeling conducted by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

Housing

Labor is vowing to spend $10billion building up to 100,000 new homes reserved just for first-home buyers by partnering with state developers to fast-track land releases, zoning and planning approvals.

However, it is encountering opposition from the Coalition, which has pledged to slash Labor's current $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund to construct 40,000 social and affordable residences within five years.

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