Federal election 2025 LIVE updates: Trump confirms 10 per cent tariffs on all Australian goods in ‘Liberation Day’ speech as PM labels them ‘unwarranted’

Returning to Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s call with 2GB’s Ben Fordham, the Liberal leader said that “the president of the Chinese Communist Party is praising Anthony Albanese, as their preferred candidate for the next election.” He said Albanese himself had pointed out we were living in the most precarious period since 1945 and the “weakness that the prime minister inherently has and displays each day” wouldn’t be in Australia’s best interests this decade and in the decades to come. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has said that Anthony Albanese is the “preferred candidate” for the Chinese Communist Party. Credit: Marija Ercegovac Asked to comment about Albanese saying he’d have more to reveal soon on Australia’s stance regarding the Chinese lease on the Port of Darwin, Dutton said: “We should … advance our national interest and our national cause, and we should do it respectfully to our partners, and China is an incredibly important trading partner, but our national security comes first, and our ability to protect and defend our country comes through a position strength, not weakness, when we’re not going to see peace prevail in a very uncertain time and we’re not going to see the trading relationship grow and our position on the world stage enhance.” Fordham reminded Dutton that the Coalition had made the port lease deal when in government. “We’ve got decisions to make that are in our country’s best interests, and the port of Darwin was a decision that was made at the time,” Dutton said. We have to make sure that we’ve got the best policies going forward. And in relation to defence, the prime minister has worked $80 billion out of defence and has cannibalised Army and Navy at the moment, as well as Air Force, to be honest, and I don’t think the prime minister has a leg to stand on when it comes to defence policy or how to make the decisions to protect our country.”