Live: Liberal McIntosh denies 'blunt' call a demand for leadership change

live Federal politics live: Liberal frontbencher Melissa McIntosh denies 'blunt' call a demand for new leadership Liberal frontbencher Melissa McIntosh has doubled down on her call for a party rebrand but denies the statement was a push for leadership change. Follow all the updates in our live blog. Submit a comment or question Live updates New: Filters Choose what information you see below by using filters Key Event Tue 30 Jun 2026 at 7:25am Chalmers stands by Treasury estimate on house prices Treasurer Jim Chalmers has continued to brush off concerns about auction clearance rates, insisting the market was softening before he released the budget. The budget included changes to negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount. The package passed the parliament last week. Chalmers says there are a "number of factors", such as interest rates, contributing to the change in the market but stood by Treasury's estimate that prices would continue to grow (albeit at a slower pace). "Overall we expect prices to continue to grow more slowly. There's a volatility in house prices. There is a bit of volatility in auction clearance rates," he tells ABC's News Breakfast. "These are long-term investments, but different market forecasts have said different things about this. The treasury assumptions are pretty clear, and they’re a national assumption, rather than specifically about Sydney or Melbourne on its own.” Tue 30 Jun 2026 at 7:19am Chalmers sent out to spruik cost-of-living measures ahead of change to fuel excise cut Treasurer Jim Chalmers is out and about this morning, spuiking the government's cost-of-living measures due to come into effect tomorrow. Tomorrow also marks the start of the government's decision to wind back the fuel excise. You'll remember in the early days of the Iran war, Labor cut the excise in half to save motorists around 26c per litre. It was due to end tomorrow. But the government extended it for another month, albeit at a reduced rate of 16 per litre. So prices will tick up a little. The consumer watchdog, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, yesterday reminded retailers not to rip off motorists. Chalmers reiterated that message while speaking with ABC's News Breakfast this morning. He also said it could be a couple of days before motorists experience a change in price. "What it means, an average motorist will save $11 a tank, all through the month of July, and that's because we're extending this cost-of-living help and it's another important way that we are helping people who are under pressure, particularly with these new cost-of-living measures which come in from tomorrow." Tue 30 Jun 2026 at 7:10am Australians don't want Liberal rebrand: Cash Michaelia Cash doesn't think voters are all that interested in her colleague Melissa McIntosh's idea of a Liberal Party rebrand. "Australians don't want us to rebrand. They want us to change the country that is actually going backwards," she told Nine. The Liberal frontbencher said there was a long way to go between now and the next election, following a decline in opinion polls. Asked if Angus Taylor's leadership was safe, Cash responded: "Absolutely." Tue 30 Jun 2026 at 7:08am Government has 'immense moral obligation' to get gambling legislation right: Costello Prominent gambling reform advocate Reverend Tim Costello says it's "ironical" that Australia led the world with a ban on social media for under-16s but is still trailing other countries on gambling reform. Labor will this week introduce its long-awaited legislation to restrict gambling advertising, including a limit to the number of gambling ads per hour and the banning of online ads for under-18s. It has been three years since a committee report, led by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy, called for a complete phased-in ban on gambling advertising. "It's ironical to me that the nation that led the world, and I'm proud of us doing this on social media, banning it for under-16s, is literally trailing the world with gambling ads. "Some 600,000 12- to 17-year-old Australians, all underage gambled last year. That's more gambling and sport than playing soccer and basketball combined." On Monday, Communications Minister Anika Wells confirmed Labor would introduce its bill into parliament but said, after consultation from stakeholders, any changes would be 'minor'. Costello says Labor has a duty to go further. "This is an immense moral obligation because gambling is becoming one of the greatest health concerns in our nation. "Our courts are clogged with people addicted to stealing to feed their gambling. We have three times more domestic violence where there's gambling in a family." Key Event Tue 30 Jun 2026 at 7:03am Liberal frontbencher doubles down on call for party refresh Liberal frontbencher Melissa McIntosh was out early this morning to clean up, and also double down, on her call for a party rebrand. Yesterday, the shadow minister declared the party should have another look at its values, policies and messaging in a bid to better appeal to voters after a drop in the polls Asked on Nine if she was angling for a change of leadership, McIntosh said her statement was "a bit blunt", but that wasn't her intention. "If things aren't resonating and if people are actually latching on to our policies and believing in that, but they're not wanting to vote for us, then maybe we need to do something about the brand," she said. McIntosh said she wanted the Liberals to have more "cut-through". "I want us to have more cut-through on our policies. I worked for John Howard back in the day, and my patch — we were the Howard battlers, we're the Menzies forgotten people, and we're 'Tony's Tradies','' she said. "We are pretty much the heartland of Australia, and when the heartland of Australia tells you that you need to get more cut-through to get more voters on your side, then you need to listen to the people." Tue 30 Jun 2026 at 6:56am Good morning 👋 Hi friends, welcome to our politics live blog. I'm Courtney Gould from the ABC's Parliament House team, here to guide you through the day. Happy EOFY for all that celebrate. From the social media ban to the call for a Liberal Party rebrand, it's a bit of a mixed bag on the news front this morning. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has been tapped to do the morning media rounds as the government tries to remind voters about measures coming into place from tomorrow. It is beyond chilly here in Canberra this morning. So get a fresh cup of coffee and settle in for the day. Loading