Anthony Albanese jets to Cambodia for East Asia summit despite cost of living problems in Australia

Anthony Albanese has jetted off overseas and left behind Australia as it grapples with the rising cost of the living crisis made worse by his broken election promises.

The Prime Minister will travel to Cambodia on Friday for the East Asia summit before then attending the G20 in Bali and APEC in Bangkok.

High up on the agenda will be discussions about the state of the global economy that has been crippled by Covid and worsened by Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine.

Mr Albanese will join world leaders to talk about the international repercussions despite Australia facing its own economic crisis back home.

Mr Albanese will join world leaders to talk about the international repercussions despite Australia facing its own economic crisis back home (stock image)

It comes after the Prime Minister failed to deliver on two key election promises that aimed to ease the rising cost of living. 

He vowed to increase real wages and slash power bills by $275, but failed to adequately address both points in the Budget his government released in October. 

Before the May federal election Mr Albanese backed a minimum wage increase of 5.1 per cent saying the ‘minimum wage should at least keep up with the cost of living’. 

Real wages then fell around 3.5 per cent over 2021 and 2022 due to a ‘combination of high inflation and modest wage growth’, budget papers revealed. 

Mr Albanese was caught breaking another election promise after failing to help Australians save $275 a year on their power bills.

Treasury now estimates energy prices will in fact soar by 56 per cent next year.

Mr Albanese will meet with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and US President Joe Biden during the the East Asia summit at Phnom Pen.

The summit comes as Cambodia and Australia mark the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relationship.

Mr Albanese vowed to increase real wages and slash power bills by $275, but failed to adequately address both points in the Budget his government released in October

Jobs, economic growth and regional resilience are expected to be high on the agenda.

Next week, Mr Albanese will join leaders from the world’s top economies at the G20 summit in Bali.

It will be the second time the prime minister has travelled to Indonesia since the federal election in May.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has invited Mr Albanese and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deliver a keynote address at the Business 20 Summit.

Food security, energy and global health will be topics of discussion at the G20.

But the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the state of the global economy is also set to be a major talking point.

Mr Albanese will meet with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and US President Joe Biden during the the East Asia summit at Phnom Pen

While Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is expected to take part virtually.

United States President Joe Biden, Chinese President Xi Jinping and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak are also expected to attend.

The summits will be an opportunity for leaders to discuss the economic instability faced across the globe in the wake of the pandemic.

‘We must work together with our international partners to tackle inflation, technical skills shortages, to tackle climate change,’ Mr Albanese told parliament on Thursday.

‘That is how we can promote stability at home.’

Mr Albanese is also keeping his options open when it comes to sideline meetings with fellow leaders, saying he’s happy to talk to anyone.

He told reporters any dialogue among world leaders is a good thing.

‘It will be an extensive nine days and a very busy nine days,’ he said.