Question: Exit polling today predicted a Labor win and the Liberals losing to a teal in Bradfield. Are you confirmed that you have left things too late?

Peter Dutton:

I would take it with a grain of salt all those small sample sizes you see in different seats.

Question: You are here talking about the safety of women does that include trans women? Do you think Trans women are women, and what protection will you afford them?

We discussed gender as well and that is an important discussion as well and we can provide support through programs as we are seeing now, there was a discussion about early intervention and education at a younger age about violence in respect for people, regardless of gender, and we are happy to continue that discussion that we had this morning.

Question: Do you think trans women are women?

A woman and gender is defined with reference made the other day to a case in the United Kingdom but I think a woman is defined as an adult female and that is the definition.

Question: Do you think a trans woman is a woman or is a woman a biologically born female?

I have answered that question.

Question: Woman? Just a yes or a no? Biological woman? Trans woman? Is a trans woman a woman?

I have given an answer.

Journalists try to pin Peter Dutton down on his EV tax backflip. They go so far as to read out his comments from earlier in the week.

The Opposition leaders squirms, again attempting to dismiss the line of questioning.

Peter Dutton:

I do not accept the premise of the question

Question: I don’t know what you mean?

I think we’re better off just to accept we have a difference of opinion but there has been no change in policy.

Question: I read the transcript just now.

I have read my response of the response was very clear, no change to policy and will not support each tax and I read the transcript myself as well. My responses is to the tax. Sometimes – sometimes you ask the question, we do not always respond exactly how you would want.

Peter Dutton is asked about leaving his policy announcements too late.

Question: Have you let the team down?

No direct answer. He defers to talking points.

In the face of more bad polling this morning, Peter Dutton claims he’s seen good polling and has Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the back foot. Wow!

I think there is a disparity where some of the published polling is compared to some (showing) we are on a pathway to win votes and there is a lot of good polling around at the moment, where I’ve seen overnight as well. And when you see the seats that Labor is out defending at the moment, I think there is a disparity where some of the published polling is.

Question: If you are successful at the vote, what will you offer Donald Trump to try and secure a tariff carveout if not critical minerals?

Peter Dutton:

We have been clear about what this election is about and it is about who has strength of leadership to stand up for our interests, whether it is in relation to tariffs or in relation to what we see on the global markets at the moment. There could well be a global recession over the course of the next few years, there could be conflict in our region or further afield in this election is about who you trust to keep our country safe, who do you trust to manage the economy well and who do you trust to stand up on the international stage for our best interests? I have been clear as we discussed in the last few days I think there are many ways in which we can bring value to the defence industry in our country, how we can deal with issues that are important to our partners. I note the government made an announcement today in relation to critical minerals but it must be about the fifth time they’ve announced it, they reheat all policies but never implement anything and Australian sufferers a result.

Question: My question is what would you offer the Trump administration to try and secure a carveout?

We were clear in terms of our very strong view that Australia has so much more to contribute to the world in terms of exports on defence manufacturing. And when you see the jobs evidenced yesterday in the firm that we visited in W.A, the opportunity here for us to grow as an export nation to the United States and elsewhere is obvious. I think there are many ways in which we can try to build a relationship. What people realise is that this election is between Anthony Albanese, who is promising to keep prices high for electricity and gas and for food, and on the other hand we are going to deliver a 25 cent a litre cut in tax fuel, fuel tax and deliver money back to you by the way of a tax rebate, get homeownership again a reality for young Australians. We will keep our country safe and make sure that we can manage the economy well so that we can bring costs down.

He’s now asked about another backflip – the decision to scrap tax breaks for people who buy electric vehicles … a policy he supported up until Tuesday.

Peter Dutton:

What we said was that there is no change to the policy and we have been clear. We do not support a $14,000 tax on a Ford Ranger nor a $12,000 tax … we will not support the big tax on cars. I have been clear about that and clear in relation to policies on EV, our policy has not changed.

The first question is more of a statement, suggesting the Opposition Leader said he’d cut skilled migration to 150,000 places per year – when there are currently just 132,000 places.

We said we would cut by 25% because the government has created the housing crisis through bringing one million people in over two years, which is unprecedented. We will clean up Labor’s mess and we will be clear about what we do in years one and two and reduce it in years three and four and bring it back up. But we have to get Australian kids into houses and we also announced we will ban for two years foreign buyers from competing with young Australians to purchase those houses.

Peter Dutton is now speaking:

This is a comprehensive package building on an investment of $3.5 million already in the space. We heard from one service this morning about the need to interact with 19 different funding streams, predominantly coming in from the Commonwealth. So, how do we work together to identify ways in which we can provide more efficiency and have that money flowing either into the base funding or into services without the obvious full-time employees that were involved? Obviously administering that, writing grant applications etc. There are better ways in which we can work with services as well as we are dedicated to all of that.

Shadow Attorney-General Michaelia Cash is up next.

We will create two new offences in the criminal code … to ensure that a person who uses a mobile phone or another computer device to make an intimate partner or family member fear for their safety, you will be able to be prosecuted … we will create an offence that means if you are installing for example spyware to track someone, that will also become an offence