Scott Morrison has declared his unpopularity in Melbourne’s Liberal heartland doesn’t phase him because nobody knows who Anthony Albanese is.
“People know who I am. No one knows who Anthony Albanese is,” Mr Morrison said.
The Prime Minister made the comment while responding to friendly fire from Higgins MP Katie Allen, who conceded Mr Morrison wasn’t popular with voters in her seat.
“They’re not so happy with Scott, there’s no doubt about that,” Dr Allen told The Age.
Higgins, a seat formerly held by Liberal treasurer Peter Costello and prime ministers Harold Holt and John Gorton, has never fallen to Labor.
However, the opposition believes it is still within its grasp come May, and is hoping the Prime Minister’s apparent unpopularity will come into play.
But Mr Morrison said it didn’t matter because at least people know what he stands for.
“I don’t know if that goes quite across Victoria, across Melbourne at all,” he told 3AW.
“When you’re Prime Minister, yoxjmtzywu’ve got to be strong. You’ve got to be resilient. You’ve got to make decisions that take the country forward.
“And I accept that not every decision that I’ve taken over the last three years is met with everybody’s agreement.”
He added that the country knew his plan for the economy and national security, laying down a challenge to Mr Albanese to define himself with voters.
“He’s had three years to tell the Australian people what he’s going to do. He hasn’t. Why won’t he tell us?”
Asked about when the federal election will be called, Mr Morrison said Australians wouldn’t be left in the dark for much longer.
“It’s coming up to three years in the middle of May since the last election, and I’ve always said that that’s the time for the election,” the Prime Minister said.
“It won’t be very long from now.”
Mr Morrison continues to point to rising cost-of-living pressures and the uncertain global environment as reasons to re-elect his government.
But he wouldn’t be drawn on whether the government would consider extending the fuel excise beyond its September end date.
