Editorial: Leaders debate: Playing it safe could cost us all in an uninspiring election campaign

It was the moment Peter Dutton showed some fight. “If you had a good story to tell Prime Minister, you wouldn’t be running a scare campaign, you’d be talking about your so called achievements in the last three years,” the Opposition Leader said mid-debate. This debate was the final chance for Mr Dutton to land a blow, and barbs flew — both targeted the other’s record in Government. Mr Dutton accused the Prime Minister of lying over cost of living, saying it was hard to believe anything he had said during the campaign. The Prime Minister challenged Mr Dutton’s energy plan and defended Labor’s approach to migration. Mr Albanese had the most to lose, and Mr Dutton the most to gain. Both started unsteady. Both leaders should be lauded for their agreement to four debates — the first time in recent political history that voters have had the chance to see the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader go head-to-head this many times. But of the four debates between Mr Albanese and Mr Dutton, the fourth and final offered the most insight. Voters saw the driving forces behind each leader — the Prime Minister’s clear passion for renewable energy projects and defending his industrial relations reforms, and the Liberal leader’s belief that only temporary cost of living measures are needed. Both could not name the price of a carton of eggs. The two men now unlikely to cross paths in their frantic final week of campaigning. Both will hit the skies, dashing across Australia to speak to as many voters as possible. In an uninspiring campaign, marked more by interruptions of international influences — Donald Trump’s tariffs, Russia and Pope Francis’ death — and public holidays, both leaders have tried to play it safe. For the Prime Minister, weeks of lies, spin and shameless campaigning have been aimed at winning a slim chance at a second term majority government, and buck the two decade history of no leader being returned in back-to-back elections. The Opposition Leader has faced questions over his preparedness for government, including a campaign marred by late policies, and a backflip over scrapping working from home for public servants. Neither have done the hard work required to bring a budget forecast to be in deficit for a decade under control, with the final costing numbers to be released by both parties this week. Neither has presented the viable big picture vision for Australia over the next decade. Almost three million Australians have already voted across the first four days of polling. Another 15 million enrolled voters will have a chance before Saturday at 6pm. Both have played it safe to this point, and both now enter a dangerous period where a stable majority government of either stripe can be won or lost. While polls still show Australia headed for a hung parliament, from here voters will have the final say.