Federal Election 2025: What Albanese, Labor promised

The campaign was hard fought, with both parties making a slew of promises on cost of living, energy, health, housing and national security in a bid to woo voters.

Now Australia has decided, here’s what we can expect to change.

COST OF LIVING

Beer tax freeze: Labor will freeze the alcohol excise on draught beer for two years, starting from August 1, 2025. While the much-hated tax adds about 1-2 cents per pint bought at the pub, it will aid brewers and publicans.

$150 energy rebate: The energy bill rebate will be extended for all households until the end of 2025, saving $150 per household at a cost of $1.8bn.

HECS cuts: Effective from June 1, 2025, the government will implement a 20 per cent reduction on all student loan debts, including HELP, VET Student Loans, and Australian Apprenticeship Support Loans.

It is expected to eliminate approximately $16bn in student debt, benefiting around 3 million Australians. A graduate with an average HELP debt of $27,600 will see about $5,520 wiped from their outstanding loan.

Increased HELP repayment thresholds: Starting in the 2025-26 financial year, the minimum income threshold for compulsory student loan repayments will rise from approximately $54,000 to $67,000.

Additionally, repayments will be calculated based on the portion of income above this new threshold. For example, an individual earning $70,000 will pay around $1,300 less per year in repayments under this new system.

Tax Cuts: In the 2025 federal budget, Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced two new tax cuts to the lowest bracket, with the rate to drop from 16 per cent to 15 per cent from July 1, 2026, and to 14 per cent in 2027-28. The cut, legislated one day after the budget was handed down, would be permanent and equate to a saving of about $10 a week for the average earner once both cuts have flowed through.

These cuts aim to help with cost-of-living pressures while helping to avoid bracket creep.

Instant tax deduction: A re-elected Labor government would introduce an instant $1000 tax deduction for work-related expenses.

Medicare levy: Changes to the Medicare levy would ensure one million low earners will remain exempt from or pay a reduced rate of the tax.

Cheaper Childcare: Labor has already passed legislation to guarantee all households with a combined income of up to $533,280 will receive a minimum three days of subsidised childcare. The party is also promising a $1bn fund to build more than 160 new centres in underserviced areas if elected.

Fee-Free TAFE: Labor will make fee-free TAFE courses permanent, with 100,000 places to be offered per year from 2027.

Food Security Measures: The government announced a $3.5m plan to enhance food security and supply chains, aiming to reduce the costs of 30 essential products in 21 remote communities and 10 regional forums across Australia.

Boost to urgent care clinics: A re-elected Labor government has pledged $644m to increase the number of Medicare urgent care clinics from 87 to 137. The new clinics have been slated to every state and territory.

Help to Buy: The government committed another $800m in the 2025 federal budget to lift property price and income caps on its Help to Buy scheme, which contributes equity of up to 40 per cent to support eligible homebuyers.

Home Guarantee Scheme: All first homebuyers to be eligible for 5 per cent deposits, without needing to pay mortgage insurance.

Power bills: $75 rebate for household and small business electricity bills to be extended for another six months.

Solar batteries: Labor will provide up to $4000 in savings per household on solar battery installations. This program will not be means tested.

Pay rises: Labor has earmarked $2.6bn for a pay rise for 60,000 aged care nurses, and made a submission to the Fair Work Commission recommending a real wage increase for three-million minimum wage and award workers.

HEALTH

$8.5bn to boost bulk-billing: Labor has made an $8.5bn Medicare pledge aimed at supercharging bulk-billing rates at GPs.

PBS boost: Medicines listed on the pharmaceutical benefits scheme will be capped at no more than $25 per script.

Telehealth expansion: Labor will spend $200m to create a 24-hour telehealth service, dubbed “1800MEDICARE”.

Women’s health bump: A $575m plan to add oral contraceptives, menopause hormone therapies, endometriosis and IVF drugs to the PBS, raise the Medicare rebate for getting an IUD from $91 to $215 and build 11 new endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics across the country, raising the number of clinics from 22 to 33.

Men’s mental health: Labor has pledged $32m toward Movember, Men’s Sheds and male-specific mental health services.

Healthcare hubs: Funding will be provided for healthcare hubs in Burnie, Tasmania and at Adelaide’s Flinders University.

Mental health: $1bn boost for headspace clinics and specialist centres for youth.

Online mental health: $135.2m for online mental health support.

Peri-natal mental health: $16.7m to bolster mental health support services for new parents.

Fairfield Hospital: $80m to expand the emergency department at Fairfield Hospital in Sydney’s southwest.

Rouse Hill Hospital: $120m toward a maternity ward at Rouse Hill Hospital being constructed in Sydney’s northwest.

Perth hospital: $200m to revamp St John of God Midland Public Hospital in Perth.

Urgent care clinics: $644m for 50 Medicare Urgent Care Clinics.

NT aged care: A new aged care home in Darwin as part of a $60m boost to Northern Territory health and aged care.

Aged care pay: A payrise for 60,000 aged care workers at $2.6bn.

LGBTQ+ care training: A $10m program to train primary healthcare for treating LGBTQ+ patients.

ENERGY

Cheap solar batteries: Labor will slash the cost of solar battery installations by up to $4000 per household from July 1, as part of its $2.3 billion Cheaper Home Batteries program.

Bill relief: The government announced in the federal budget it would extend the current energy bill rebate until the end of the year, saving households $150.

Community energy upgrades: Labor has pledged $100m for energy upgrades to community facilities, including more efficient lighting and battery storage at sporting fields, community halls and libraries.

Green social housing: Labor will add another $500m to its Social Housing Energy Performance Initiative, worth a total $800m, to cut energy bills and reduce emissions for social housing tenants.

Vehicle emission standards: Legislation has been enacted to establish vehicle emission standards for new vehicles sold in Australia, effective from July 1, 2025, to reduce transportation-related emissions. This will include penalties for manufacturers breaching the standard.

Renewable energyfocus: Labor will aim to source 82 per cent of the electricity grid from renewables by 2030, which will be firmed by battery storage and gas. It’s currently at about 35 per cent.

Critical minerals reserve: Announced in response to Donald Trump’s blanket ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs, an elected Labor government would pledge $1.2bn for a National Reserve of Critical Minerals, including lithium and nickel.

National emission reduction target: The government has committed to reducing carbon emissions by 43 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030, a target that has been legislated to ensure accountability and progress. Labor has also continue to back Australia as a signature to the Paris Climate Agreement which requires participating countries to reach net zero by 2050.

Expansion of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC): An additional $2bn has been allocated to the CEFC to support households, workers, and businesses in adopting renewable energy solutions, making clean energy more accessible and affordable.

Weather radar: Labor has committed to a $10m investment in a new Bureau of Meteorology weather radar for regional Queensland.

HOUSING

Foreign buyer ban: Labor will ban foreign investors and temporary residents from buying existing homes for two years. The policy does not stop this cohort investing in newly built homes.

New home builds: Labor will expand its Homes for Australia plan to build an extra 100,000 homes specifically for first-time buyers. The party has also vowed $54m to boost construction of prefabricated and modular homes.

Help to Buy: The government committed another $800m in the 2025 federal budget to lift property price and income caps on its Help to Buy scheme, which contributes equity of up to 40 per cent to support eligible homebuyers.

Home Guarantee Scheme: All first homebuyers to be eligible for 5 per cent deposits, without needing to pay mortgage insurance.

Tradies: In a bid to boost supply, the government is offering construction apprentices a $10,000 cash bonus, while employers of various key trades can get $5000 under the Priority Hiring Incentive. Tradies can also get means-tested concessional loans to help with living expenses, learning a trade and doing an apprenticeship.

Infrastructure boost: Labor has committed $1.5bn to fast-track roads, sewerage and water connections, aimed to speed up construction of new housing.

Rental investment: Investors will receive tax breaks as part of the build-to-rent program, which is estimated to deliver an extra 80,000 units over the next 10 years.

NATIONAL SECURITY

Port of Darwin: Labor has flagged it would seek a superfund to buy the Port of Darwin back from Chinese-owned Landbridge Holdings, but not ruled out forcing a sale. The 99-lease to Landbridge was greenlit by the former Turnbull-Coalition government in 2015.

Defence spending: Labor has pledged to pump at least $50.3bn into defence over the next decade, with the Prime Minister leaving the door open to further increases.

Peacekeeping in Ukraine: Mr Albanese has said he is open to discussing Australian troops in Ukraine as part of a European-led peacekeeping mission.

DeepSeek AI ban: In February 2025, the government banned DeepSeek – a Chinese artificial intelligence model – from all government systems and devices. This decision aligns with actions taken by other nations and is based on intelligence assessments on potential risks.

Defence technologies: The Albanese government has allocated funds to expedite the development of technologies aimed at countering integrated air and missile defence systems of potential adversaries.

Development of a National Food Security Strategy: Recognising the importance of safeguarding food supply chains, the government announced a $3.5m investment to create the “Feeding Australia” plan. This strategy aims to enhance the security and resilience of Australia’s agriculture and food production systems, ensuring stability in the face of potential disruptions.

Advanced defence technologies: The government is accelerating the development of technologies to counter integrated air and missile defence systems of potential adversaries. Through the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator, two Australian companies have been contracted to develop these capabilities, aligning with the ADF’s strategic priorities.

AUKUS supply chains: An additional $262m has been allocated to bolster local defence industries and develop Australia’s nuclear-powered submarine supply chain under the AUKUS partnership. This investment underscores the government’s commitment to enhancing the nation’s defence industrial base and contributing to collective security efforts with allies.

Electronic warfare: The government is funding Canberra-based companies to advance electronic warfare technologies. This initiative is part of the AUKUS Innovation Challenge and aims to produce critical capabilities for the defence forces of Australia, the UK, and the US, in a bid to deepen collaborative defence innovation.