Albanese concedes savings needed as he faces internal Labor pressure on cost-of-living crisis

Prime minister vows not to slash health and education funding amid political problem over handling of economy Anthony Albanese has ruled out major cuts to health, education and essential services in December’s mid-year budget update, but conceded savings are required as Labor struggles to curb accelerating inflation.
Amid growing pressure from within Labor’s own ranks, as well as from the opposition and business, Albanese said the Coalition was hypocritical in not supporting existing savings proposals, including the government’s plan to reduce the private health insurance rebate for people over 65.
Read in depth: Politics
Quebec premier says he will boycott Canada-EU summit in Montreal
Paul St-Pierre Plamondon says Quebec was shut out of the talks and warns that agreements affecting provincial powers may not be implemented there.
California billionaire tax vote draws record campaign spending
Proposition 40 would impose a one-time 5% tax on billionaires’ net worth. A new analysis finds record spending by current and former California billionaires ahead of the 3...
Sources and context
The GuardianSource headline and summary supplied via NewsData.io. First collected by NewsJaws on 2026-10-29. This is an automated news brief, not original NewsJaws reporting. Dates reflect the source publication. Feed delays may apply.