Hello and welcome back to another day of Australia Institute Live. Every morning I wake up thinking no one is reading and every day I am humbled to see how many people are actually tuning in. We are taking on your feedback (and yes, that includes comments) and we love that you feel as invested in this as we do. It was an ambitious idea and it only exists because of the amazing work of the Australia Institute team – both the names you see and ones you don’t – and because of people like you.

In this cynical world and media space, that can be enough to get me teary.

OK, to the day.

After Sky and Daily Telegraph’s People’s Forum gave Anthony Albanese the win in last night’s debate – 44 to Albanese, 35 to Peter Dutton and 21 undecided – the News Corp mastheads have had to do a bit of a wiggle to declare Dutton the winner.

These people are deluded. The quote pictured is from Shanahan in the oz. Albanese won the vote in the room 44-35.

— Jonathan Green (@greenj.bsky.social) 2025-04-08T20:33:34.708Z

Which is still not as far as the Queensland LNP went.

Does any of this matter?

No, not really. There was no clanker of a performance, nothing that would tank either leader and more voters who didn’t see it, than did. (Hence the attempts to try and make it seem Dutton won – because more people will see that post than watched the debate/even knew it was on)

Campaigning continues in Sydney this morning before both leaders take off for their next step. Jim Chalmers and Angus Taylor are debating in a similar format tonight, which seems very unfair to Taylor who will be coming off an absolute rinsing delivered to him by a very prepared, Billi FitzSimons of the The Daily Aus. Turns out a pink cardigan can hide a razor sharp mind. Which Taylor should have known if he had any dealings at all with the CWA.

We’ll cover all the day’s events as they happen, with fact checks and some snark. You have Amy Remeikis with you for most of the day. Ready? My second coffee isn’t, but let’s get into it.