Voters Disappointed with Labor’s Economic Management, Shift Support to Coalition—Sydney Auction Clearance Rate at 63%

Week’s Key Focus

After a political dispute over public spending and high inflation, voters have downgraded their assessment of Labor’s management of the nation’s finances, shifting more support towards the Coalition—a significant test of budget management.

Over the past four weeks, Labor’s primary vote has slightly increased from 28% to 29%, marking a small but important gain after months of decline. Meanwhile, the Coalition’s core support has dipped from 38% to 37%. However, in terms of economic management, the Coalition has solidified its lead over Labor and expanded its advantage in budget policy, especially as the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) blames federal and state government spending for exacerbating inflationary pressures.

Survey results show that Opposition Leader Peter Dutton continues to maintain a slight edge over Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, with 36% favoring Dutton and 35% supporting Albanese. The Resolve Political Monitor, conducted by Resolve Strategic for this publication, highlights the impact of the cost of living on households, with 56% of voters expecting the national outlook to worsen over the next year.

When asked who is better at managing the nation’s finances, voters strongly favored Dutton and the Coalition, with 41% choosing the opposition and only 23% supporting Albanese and Labor. Over the past month, the Coalition has widened its lead on this measure from 15 to 18 percentage points.

In terms of economic management, 40% of voters support Dutton and the Coalition, while 23% back Albanese and Labor. As federal parliament resumes on Monday, the major parties are divided over government spending, particularly after the RBA revised its forecasts last week, predicting that inflation will remain above its target range of 2% to 3% until late next year.

The RBA has attributed the rise in inflation to domestic demand and pointed to government spending as a contributing factor, putting Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers on the defensive over their spending decisions. While holding the cash rate at 4.35%, RBA Governor Michele Bullock stated that public demand was offsetting weakness in private demand, and added that this might not necessarily put upward pressure on inflation.

Meanwhile, RBA Assistant Governor Sarah Hunter countered some of the government’s claims about the economy, stating that demand was running “a little bit hot” and that Labor’s measures to subsidize energy bills would not help achieve a sustained return to the inflation target.

Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor called for spending cuts to ease inflationary pressures, noting that the Coalition has already rejected $45 billion worth of Labor policies, though he did not specify which cuts would have an immediate impact on inflation. Last week, Taylor stated, “We need to see improvements in labor productivity. We need to see public spending reflecting what is needed to get inflation down.” Despite the government’s attempt to avoid a confrontation with the central bank, Chalmers dismissed the RBA’s assertions about economic growth, arguing that budget spending is not the primary factor driving up prices. “Given all the data and feedback we receive, it’s hard to sustain an argument that the economy is running too hot or that people have too much spare cash, because the data shows that’s not the case,” Chalmers said.

Following the RBA’s warning, the government chose to proceed with a $3.6 billion, two-year wage subsidy for childcare workers rather than halt spending, reflecting strong views within the federal cabinet about the need to maintain economic growth and increase wages.

When voters were asked who was best equipped to control the cost of living, 34% chose Dutton and the Coalition, while 23% favored Albanese and Labor. Over the past month, the Coalition’s lead on this issue has grown from 7 to 11 percentage points.

Reed noted, “Most voters are tuning out of political events and policy debates right now, so we find little evidence that the recent reshuffle, tax cuts, childcare subsidy, or spending debate have influenced vote choice. Labor has benefited from some clear air, but many voters are still sending a message that they expect more in tackling living costs, housing, and crime.”

The Resolve Political Monitor surveyed 1,607 people from Wednesday to Sunday, with a margin of error of 2.4%. This means that all changes in the primary vote are within the margin of error. Because this poll asked voters to nominate their primary votes in the same way they would fill out their ballot papers for the lower house at an election, there was no “undecided” category in the results. Some other surveys remove the “uncommitted” group before finalizing their results from the remaining respondents.

Rouse Hill

Don’t Miss Out! Premium Registered Land in Rouse Hill, Sydney’s Northwest – Prices Starting at AUD $2400 per Square Meter

Auction Results Last Week

Sydney: 686 properties were scheduled for auction, with 408 results reported and 257 sold, resulting in a clearance rate of 63%. The total auction value was AUD 325,270,500, with a median house price of AUD 1,546,000.
Melbourne: 882 properties were scheduled for auction, with 627 results reported and 413 sold, resulting in a clearance rate of 66%. The total auction value was AUD 343,691,476, with a median house price of AUD 1,009,000.