Penalty rates are at the centre of Easter campaigning as Labor and the coalition trade barbs and look to sway undecided voters ahead of early voting.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese started Sunday at St Mary’s Cathedral with partner Jodie Haydon, welcomed by Sydney’s archbishop ahead of mass while Opposition Leader Peter Dutton attended a community BBQ in Ipswich.

Both issued Easter messages, with Mr Albanese wishing Australians a weekend of “everything you want it to be” and Mr Dutton saying it was a time to remember that “what’s important is family, our friends and our society”.

Pre-polling opens on Tuesday ahead of the May 3 election.

The traditional lull in campaigning over the Easter long weekend didn’t stop each party’s attack dogs being sent out early as Labor uses the public holiday to say it will protect penalty rates while the coalition accuses it of a scare campaign.

Employment Minister Murray Watt accused the Liberals of wanting to scrap penalty rates after Labor pledged to legislate protections.

Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie called the move “an absolute political stunt” as the coalition said it wouldn’t support legislation, instead leaving it up to the independent Fair Work Commission.

“You’ve got the Labor Party coming out saying … somehow the coalition’s got penalty rates in their sights, that is not correct,” she told Sky News on Sunday.

“We believe the independent Fair Work Commission is the responsible body to set penalty rates as they are to set minimum wages and you shouldn’t have parliament or the government getting involved in that independent process.”

Senator Watt denied interfering with the independent body. 

“What we’re doing is setting the parameters of what must be included in awards and what cannot be removed from awards and we think that penalty rates are an important part of people’s pay packet,” he said.

Labor has also been accused of running a scare campaign over health policy, claiming the coalition would shut urgent care clinics to pay for its nuclear policy. 

The crux of the argument comes from Labor insinuating where Mr Dutton would cut spending to pay for his nuclear power plan – set to cost hundreds of billions of dollars – as the opposition hasn’t outlined its full cost-saving measures.

“This guy has got more cuts in store than Freddy Krueger,” Senator Watt said.

Senator McKenzie accused Labor of spreading lies about its health policy while coalition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston branded it a “desperate scare tactic”.

“Zero, the coalition will not be cutting any existing urgent care clinics,” Senator McKenzie said.

The coalition hasn’t pledged to match new clinics Labor is announcing in the campaign, reviewing them on a case-by-case basis, but will reveal its own suite of future clinics, the full list of which is yet to be released.

Labor has been buoyed by recent polling swinging in its favour, putting a majority government in reach, while the Greens are confident there will be a hung parliament.

Greens leader Adam Bandt has written to the secretaries of Treasury and Prime Minister and Cabinet departments to request they prioritise briefing future ministers on negative gearing and capital gains discount reforms.

Reforming housing tax breaks is a key demand from the Greens, but its leverage isn’t certain as it fights to retain three out of its four lower house seats.

The coalition insists it isn’t a write-off, with Liberal frontbencher Michael Sukkar saying if it was “a slave to polls”, it would have given up in 2019 when Scott Morrison was behind before an unexpected win.

“We are in it to win it and I can assure you there’s no one on our side waving a white flag,” he told the ABC’s Insiders program.

Australia’s church leaders are sharing a message of hope in an uncertain Easter period.

From trade wars, military wars and cyber wars to climate disasters, cost of living crises, economic instability and polarisation, Australians are living in a time of global upheaval.

“We can be short on reasons to hope,” Sydney Catholic Archbishop Anthony Fisher said.

But as the great Martin Luther King Jr said, it’s only when it’s dark enough that we can see the stars.

“For Christians, hope is more than just sunny temperament or wishful thinking,” Rev Fisher said.

“It’s most evident when sorely tested. It sustains us doing our best when things are hard.”

This year Catholics are marking the Jubilee of Hope, a time for followers to renew their trust in God.

Catholic Archbishop of Adelaide Patrick O’Regan said no matter the burdens people carry or how dark the world may seem, Christ’s resurrection is the promise that light will always overcome darkness.

“Our world today faces many uncertainties, wars, struggles and personal hardships, yet Easter reminds us that we are not alone,” he said.

“Christ has conquered death, and his victory is our hope as a church, our mission is to be bearers of this hope and of this peace.”

For the Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, chaos emanating from overseas can make it feel like the world is just holding on.

“We were already anxious, but now we are even more so,” Anglican Archbishop of Adelaide Geoff Smith said.

But Anglicans can take solace in the resurrection of Jesus, which he said marks the defeat of death and the opening of a new reality for the world. 

“This reality offers hope,” Rev Smith said.

“Not hope in the future but hope today from the future.”

The Easter period has kicked off with a generous start as Victorians dug deep to deliver a record-breaking $23,822,792 donation for the 2025 Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal.

But amid the fanfare, global charity UNICEF Australia is renewing its urgent appeal for support throughout the period, highlighting an escalation in devastation across war zones in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine.

The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations has called for a boycott of Cadbury Easter eggs to send a message to its parent company, Mondelez, after it made more than US$1.4 billion in revenue in Russia and paid the Kremlin at least US$62 million in taxes.

Authorities at home are pleading for safety on the roads and by the water after a horror start to the long weekend, with five drownings and two still missing at sea.

Roads will be busier than usual as many people travel to visit family and friends or take the opportunity to get away.

This leads to an uptick in family violence, often because families, including those who don’t see each other regularly, come into increased contact, which police say can increase stress and conflict.

With voters turning their attention to the Easter long weekend, the pace of the two major parties’ election campaigns has entered a lull.

Both Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton attended the Sydney Royal Easter Show on Saturday, in a bid to sell their messages just days ahead of early voting opening.

Up to half of voters are expected to cast their ballots before the May 3 election, when hundreds of pre-polling centres progressively starting opening across the country from Tuesday.

The prime minister is expected to attend a church service in Sydney on Easter Sunday, while the opposition leader will be in his home city of Brisbane.

“I want to wish everyone a safe and joyous Easter weekend,” Mr Albanese said.

“For Christians, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is a sacred time that is central to faith.

“Whether you’re reflecting, taking a break, spending time with family and friends, or getting the kids ready for an Easter egg hunt, this is a wonderful time of the year.

“So however you’re spending this weekend, may it be everything you want it to be.”

For those travelling, the prime minister urged them to stay safe.

Mr Dutton said the Christian holiday was a time for “reflection” and to be with loved ones.

“The Easter story is one of faith, renewal and enduring hope,” he said.

“Easter also reminds us of the values that help bind our nation together- service, kindness, compassion and grace.

“From my family to yours, I wish you a safe, happy and holy Easter.”

The leaders spent the past week crisscrossing the nation after they kicked off their official campaigns last Sunday.

The latest YouGov poll, published last week, showed Labor had further gained ground against the coalition on a two-party preferred basis, recording the strongest result in 18 months.

Almost half of voters said Mr Albanese was their preferred prime minister compared to 38 per cent who back Mr Dutton, according to Newspoll.

Labor has positioned itself as the protector of penalty rates and is warning a coalition proposal to ban working from home will be revived if it wins office.

The government on Saturday announced it would enshrine evening, weekend and holiday pay allowances in law if re-elected.

That would prevent business groups like the Australian Retailers Association applying to the Fair Work Commission to cut penalty rate provisions from award agreements. 

Industrial relations issues have worked in Labor’s favour during the campaign, with polling showing the short-lived pledge by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton to force public servants back into the office fared poorly with voters.

Education Minister Jason Clare on Saturday warned the dropped proposal was still on the coalition’s agenda, noting a weekend comment by shadow finance minister Jane Hume that it was “good policy” but just not the appropriate time to introduce it. 

“You know what that means. They think the right time to change this is after the election,” he told reporters in Sydney.

He accused the opposition leader of being “Dutton dressed up as lamb”, pretending he doesn’t want to stop people working from home.

But if the coalition wins the election “they’ll go out of their way to stop you from working from home”, Mr Clare said.

More polling has shown the issue of how parties treat penalty rates could be decisive, with the union-commissioned research finding it would be a consideration for up to 70 per cent of voters.

The Essential Research poll said 44 per cent of people were more likely to vote for a party that had policies in place to protect penalties, compared with 10 per cent being less likely to.

Retail worker Pauline Lethborg said the extra money from penalty allowances went a long way.

“If we lose penalty rates, it doesn’t just affect the older workers, it’s the younger ones as well. That bonus money goes to pay rent and food,” she said.

“It’s not like we’re being paid $100 an hour, a lot of retail workers are on $20 to $25 an hour … penalty rates is what gives them their supplementary income.”

The Australian Retail Association earlier in 2025 submitted a proposal for some staff at large companies to opt out of penalty rates in exchange for a 25 per cent pay rise.

Employer lobby Australian Industry Group has backed a similar push for the clerks and banking awards, arguing the rise in working from home has made it impractical for employees to log their hours and compounds the regulatory burden on employers.

Labor had filed a submission to the Fair Work Commission opposing the changes.

Mr Albanese said on Saturday the penalty rates promise was in line with Labor’s goal of delivering for working people.

“(It) is something we’ve been doing since 1891,” he said.

“We have supported working people earning more and also we support them keeping more of what they earn.”

Mr Dutton said Labor was using the issue as a scare tactic and a distraction from the rising cost-of-living.

An independent umpire sets the conditions and both sides of politics had abided by that, he said.

“We don’t propose any departure from the current arrangements.”

“If you are after another stunt from the Labor Party go no further than this.”

The coalition has also announced it will offer tapered tax offsets for newly incorporated small and family businesses in the first three years of operation under a policy to “revive entrepreneurship”.

Small businesses would also be able to claim a tax deduction of $2000 for technology upgrades of $4000 or more.

Mr Albanese and Mr Dutton spent Good Friday in Sydney, both visiting the Easter show.

Electioneering will heat up again with early voting opening on Tuesday ahead of the May 3 poll.

The White House’s economic adviser says President Donald Trump and his team are continuing to study if they could fire US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell – a sign that such a move, a matter of great consequence for the central bank’s independence and for global markets, is still an option.

“The president and his team will continue to study that matter,” Hassett said at the White House when a reporter asked if “firing Jay Powell is an option in a way that it wasn’t before,” Kevin Hassett said on Friday.

Hassett’s remarks came a day after Trump ramped up a long-simmering feud with the Fed chair, accusing Powell of “playing politics” by not cutting interest rates and asserting he had the power to evict Powell from his job “real fast”.

Trump doubled down on his criticism of Powell on Friday, telling reporters during an Oval Office event: “If we had a Fed chairman that understood what he was doing, interest rates would be coming down. He should bring them down.”

Powell has said that the law would not allow his removal, that he would not leave if asked to by Trump, and that he intends to serve through the end of his term as chair in May 2026. Powell, whose term as a member of the Fed’s Board of Governors extends through January 2028, also said this week he does not think the current case on appeal at the US high court will apply to the Fed.

Powell, first appointed to the Fed by Barack Obama, was elevated to Fed chair by Trump during his first term, but the Republican president soon soured on him for raising interest rates. Trump repeatedly berated Powell in public and considered trying to fire him but never did.

The issue has arisen again in the last week with Powell and other Fed officials saying they believe Trump’s aggressive tariffs could put them in a bind with the potential for them to push up inflation while harming overall economic growth and labour markets. Trump on Thursday chastised Powell again for not cutting rates.

“The Fed really owes it to the American people to get interest rates down. That’s the only thing he’s good for,” Trump said.

“I am not happy with him. If I want him out of there he’ll be out real fast believe me.”

Hassett said Trump’s policies were boosting capital spending and job creation was increasing, while inflation was declining.

Economists and investors have been following the escalation with trepidation. The Fed’s credibility as the world’s most powerful central bank rests largely on its historic independence to act free from political influence, and an effort to remove Powell could further roil markets already battered for weeks by Trump’s erratic approach to imposing his new tariffs, with the rollout beset by a mix of delays, partial rollbacks and escalations, with China in particular.

Easter bunnies and eggs are burning a bigger hole in Australian wallets than ever before and more chocolate pain could trickle down under US tariffs.

Global cocoa prices have dropped 21 per cent compared to last Easter, data analysis from trading and investing platform eToro shows, fuelled by sunnier production forecasts for 2025.

But prices for cocoa beans almost doubled from $6500 to $12,500 per tonne between March 2024 and January, and remain almost 200 per cent higher than Easter in 2023.

“In recent years, adverse weather conditions have affected crops in Africa, which we aren’t seeing right now,” eToro market analyst Josh Gilbert told AAP.

“Record high cocoa prices through 2024 mean consumers globally will still be feeling the pinch when it comes to buying Easter treats this year, and Aussies are no exception.”

When combined with other market forces, it means Australians are paying up to $2 more for their favourite chocolate treats this Easter.

A 180g Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate block cost $6 last Easter and is now $8 at full price, while Ferrero Rocher Easter eggs jumped from $8 to $10.

Manufacturers have also turned to “shrinkflation”, with Cadbury not touching the price of its hunting Easter eggs but reducing the number of goodies from 12 to 11.

Mr Gilbert warned shelf prices could rise even higher beyond Easter as top cocoa growers Ivory Coast and Ghana have been hit by US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, disrupting global trade flow.

“Both are looking to negotiate with President Trump,” he said.

“But if these tariffs stay, then this will undoubtedly have an effect on prices and thus Australian consumers too.”

Rabobank commodities analyst Paul Joules pointed out there was an uptick in cocoa prices when the tariffs were unveiled in early April, before quickly coming down.

“It just adds to the volatility and then at the same time you’ve got some genuine supply and production issues,” he told AAP.

“But the bottom line is we’ve been in a very tight supply picture for over a year now and that’s going to take a while to fix itself.”

Ivory Coast and Ghana produce 70 per cent of the world’s cocoa and growers are insulated from broader commodity volatility as their nation’s governments set farmgate prices once or twice a year, Mr Joules said.

“That’s another element that suggests (prices) will be a bit slower to come down,” he added.

Australians are forecast to spend $4.8 billion on this year’s Easter festivities, up from $4 billion in 2024, according to a survey by comparison site Finder.

The survey of 1004 people showed fewer intended to buy chocolate this Easter compared to last, down from 54 per cent to 49 per cent, and were bracing to spend more ($68 instead of $57).

Easter was continuing to put pressure on family budgets, prompting many to rethink their plans, Finder’s Sarah Megginson said.

“A lot of families are giving homemade gifts like rocky road or lollies in small hampers instead this Easter, to save money while still enjoying the festivities,” she said.

Not only chocolate bunnies are causing headaches this Easter.

Farmers have reported paddocks in NSW’s Riverina region are swarming with wild rabbits every night, ravaging crops and pastures.

In his Easter message, Catholic Archbishop of Sydney Anthony Fisher called for people to “dare to hope” amid testing times across the world.

“Trade wars, military wars and cyber wars. Natural disasters and climate change. Cost of living, recession, political instability … we can be short on reasons to hope,” he said.

“Yet as the great Martin Luther King Jr pointed out, it’s only when its dark that we can see the stars.”

As the election campaign hits a brief pause for Easter, Labor has positioned itself as the protector of penalty rates for those working during the holiday period.

The government on Saturday announced it would enshrine penalty rates in law if re-elected.

That would prevent business groups, such as the Australian Retailers Association, from applying to the Fair Work Commission to cut the provisions from award agreements. 

Industrial relations issues have worked in Labor’s favour during the campaign, with polling showing Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s short-lived pledge to force public servants back into the office fared poorly with voters.

With cost-of-living concerns at the forefront of the campaign, more polling has shown how parties treat penalty rates could be a factor in how people vote.

The Essential Research polling, commissioned by Australian Unions, found 70 per cent of respondents said protecting penalty rates for workers would be an issue voters take into consideration at the ballot box.

The poll also said 44 per cent of people were more likely to vote for a party that had policies in place to protect penalty rates, compared with 10 per cent being less likely to support such a party.

Retail worker Pauline Lethborg said the extra money from penalty rates went a long way.

“If we lose penalty rates, it doesn’t just affect the older workers, it’s the younger ones as well. That bonus money goes to pay rent and food,” she said.

“The cost of living these days is very hard, right across the board.

“It’s not like we’re being paid $100 an hour, a lot of retail workers are on $20 to $25 an hour … penalty rates is what gives them their supplement income.”

The Australian Retail Association earlier in 2025 submitted a proposal for some staff at large companies to opt out of penalty rates in exchange for a 25 per cent raise.

Employer lobby Australian Industry Group has backed a similar push for the clerks and banking awards, arguing the rise in working from home has made it impractical for employees to log their hours and compounds the regulatory burden on employers.

Labor had filed a submission to the Fair Work Commission opposing the changes, while also calling for the coalition to provide clarity on its penalty rate stance.

Around three million workers would be affected if Labor succeeds in legislating to protect penalty rates.

Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt said employees deserved to be rewarded for giving up family time to work on weekends.

“We will always stand with workers to protect their wages so that we can help them deal with the pressures of today and get ahead in the future,” he said.

Opposition employment spokeswoman Michaelia Cash said in February penalty rates would not be cut under a future coalition government, dismissing Labor attacks as a scare campaign.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton spent Good Friday in Sydney, amid a lull in campaigning for the Easter period.

But electioneering will heat up again with early voting opening on Tuesday ahead of the May 3 poll.

Indonesia will increase imports of US food and commodities and reduce orders from countries the Southeast Asian nation currently buys the products from, its chief economic minister says.

Airlangga Hartarto is in Washington as part of a delegation of senior officials to meet US counterparts for talks on a 32 per cent tariff on Indonesian exports, which has been paused for 90 days.

Indonesia has proposed increasing its imports from the US by up to $US19 billion ($A30 billion), including $US10 billion of energy imports, to eliminate its trade surplus with Washington and avoid the tariffs threatened by the administration of President Donald Trump.

“Indonesia also plans to buy agricultural products including wheat, soybeans and soybean meal and increase purchases of capital goods from the US,” Airlangga said at a news conference in Washington that was broadcast on Zoom.

Indonesia will also work on critical minerals and simplify procedures related to American horticultural products imports.

“We will also facilitate American companies that have been operating in Indonesia, related to permits and incentives,” he said on Thursday.

After a meeting with the US trade representative and the secretary of commerce, the two countries agreed to complete negotiations within the next 60 days.

Hoards of seafood lovers have hit Australia’s biggest fish market to land themselves a Good Friday feast.

As punters gear up for a bumper, back-to-back long weekend period, customers poured into the renowned Sydney Fish Market with more than 50,000 expected to buy over 650 tonnes of seafood, more than the weight of a jumbo jet.

It could be the last at the current site with a new $1 billion site set for completion in the coming year. 

Joli Kosapan, who works at Peter’s Fish Market, said it was her shop’s busiest day of the year.

“Very, very busy … people have been here since 3am, 4am, and the early morning was the busiest period,” she told AAP.

“The lines here are very long and we’ve got sushi, sashimi, fresh fish, hot food and an oyster bar.”

Throngs of people surveyed shops for their pick of fresh fish, including premium options such as coral trout and crab legs, priced at $70 and $90 per kilogram.

Amy James opted for a somewhat more affordable whole snapper, coming in at $30 a kilogram.

“We’ll have a nice meal as a family tonight,” she told AAP.

The lunch rush brought lengthy queues, including a 30-deep line at Peter’s hot seafood bar.

Patiently waiting in the line were Rob Henderson and his seven-year-old son.

“He wanted to come down, so here we are,” Mr Henderson told AAP.

“It’s Good Friday, it’s fresh seafood and there’s not a lot else to do … there’s not a lot of hot food at the market so it’s worth the wait.”

Outside, market-goers sat and enjoyed their feed under a glorious autumn sun, with fresh fruit and ice cream also popular purchases along with hot and cold drinks.

In Victoria, the Royal Children’s Hospital’s Good Friday Appeal was boosted by a $1 million donation from the state government.

Premier Jacinta Allan became teary when recalling her now-teenage daughter’s stay at the hospital as an infant.

“My family is like so many other Victorian families where we’ve received that very, very special care at the Royal Children’s Hospital where our daughter spent her very first Easter,” she told reporters on Friday.

“Back then it was incredibly tough and incredibly challenging.”

Regional Australia is set to capitalise with a commercial boon expected from red-hot holiday travel, with Easter and ANZAC breaks falling on back-to-back weekends.

Towns are expected to win big with accommodation, cafes and restaurants booked out ahead of time, said NAB retail customer executive Larna Manson.

“Road trips across Australia are proving to be a more cost-effective way families can enjoy some time away and make new memories without the price tag of an overseas trip,” she said.

With temperatures expected to rise around the country, beachgoers are urged to take care this long weekend.

Heavy swells along the east coast brought tragedy, with two drownings and a fisherman dead after he was swept off the rocks. 

Taking advantage of the conditions, Victoria is playing host to the world’s best surfers at the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach starting Friday.

On the other side of the country, Tropical Cyclone Errol is approaching the Kimberley coast of Western Australia and will generate wind and rain into the weekend.

While a sunny and dry Easter is expected across Queensland, widespread major flooding continues for southwest Queensland, northeast South Australia and northern New South Wales.

Hostilities in the battle for the prime ministership have been briefly paused as leaders struck a more subdued tone on the campaign trail on Good Friday.

With most of the country putting thoughts of an election on the backburner during the Easter break, Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton also adopted a more laidback approach.

The prime minister joined Bennelong MP Jerome Laxale for a casual stroll with their dogs Toto and Toby at a park in the marginal seat.

Chatting with some locals, the conversation naturally turned to the prime minister’s pet passion – the South Sydney Rabbitohs – who face a tough test against the NRL ladder-leading Bulldogs on Friday afternoon.

“Souths are gonna win, the Easter bunnies,” Mr Albanese quipped.

Mr Laxale won the seat in Sydney’s inner north from the Liberals at the 2022 election, but a redistribution has put the electorate notionally into the opposition column on a minuscule margin of 0.04 per cent.

Meanwhile, the opposition leader attended one of Australia’s largest Good Friday services at the Monastery of Saint Charbel in western Sydney alongside 20,000 Maronite worshippers.

Mr Dutton was alongside former prime minister Scott Morrison at the service, along with Labor’s Tony Burke, MP for the church’s local electorate of Watson.

The opposition leader is hoping the Easter break can lead to a campaign reset, with fresh polling showing the coalition on track to record an unwelcome election record.

The latest YouGov poll, provided to AAP, showed the coalition tied with Labor for first preferences after its primary vote fell to 33 per cent.

If the poll results were replicated at the May 3 election, the coalition would receive its lowest share of primary votes since the Liberal Party was formed in 1944.

YouGov’s director of public data Paul Smith said the opposition would need a miracle to be able to recover, with the election just two weeks away.

“This is a dramatic fall from the coalition’s position only a few weeks ago in February from being in the box seat to win the election,” he told AAP.

“It would take a historic turnaround for the coalition to win … given voters are already receiving their postal votes and pre-poll starts on Tuesday.

“The coalition is running out of time.”

The poll showed Labor increasing its lead on a two-party preferred basis, with the government getting half a percentage point boost to be ahead 53 per cent to 47 per cent.

It’s Labor’s highest two-party preferred result for 18 months and almost a full point higher than its election-winning result in 2022.

The YouGov poll also showed Anthony Albanese stabilising his lead as preferred prime minister over Mr Dutton, leading 48 per cent to 38 per cent.

While Mr Dutton has gained some ground in his net-satisfaction levels, rising from minus 15 to minus 10 since the previous week, he still trails Mr Albanese, who sits on minus six.

“The main driver of the coalition’s fall in primary votes is voters rejecting seeing Peter Dutton as prime minister,” Mr Smith said.

“It can be seen in the strong preference shown by men and outer-suburban voters for the prime minister over Peter Dutton.

“If Peter Dutton is rejected by outer-suburban voters and men, it’s game over for the coalition at the election.”

The YouGov poll of 1506 voters was conducted between April 11 and 15, with a margin of error of 3.3 per cent.