LIVE: Election campaign 2025 – Anthony Albanese faces another immigration problem as overseas arrivals exposed for using devious tactic to sneak into Australia

By BRETT LACKEY FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

Published: 00:05 BST, 17 April 2025 | Updated: 01:25 BST, 17 April 2025

The Prime Minister and Peter Dutton both start their day in Sydney this morning following a fiery second debate last night that appeared evenly matched. The campaign is set to heat up as election day draws closer.

Australians go to the polls on May 3.

Follow Daily Mail Australia’s live campaign coverage below.

Figures reveal foreign students disappearing

Bombshell new figures from a major Australian university reveal foreign students are getting visas into the country with work rights and then ditching their courses.

Queensland University of Technology said in its 2024 annual report nearly half of its foreign students had dropped out of their studies in their first year.

‘The retention rate for international students dropped to an unusual and historic low of 53.6 per cent because of an unusually high number of students who did not meaningfully engage from the outset,’ the report states.

International students comprise the largest demographic of foreign arrivals Australia.

Economists have said immigration is putting major pressure on the housing market, particularly rentals, as more people compete for accomodation, driving up prices.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been struggling to keep foreign arrival numbers down after they reached record levels in the first year of his term following the Covid pandemic.

It seems the battle is far from won with data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showing that in February this year a new monthly record of 197,000 international students arrived in the country.

‘Under Labor, migration has, and will continue to put pressure on housing, infrastructure and services,’ Opposition leader Peter Dutton said.

‘A Coalition government will restore the dream of home ownership by cutting migration and starting a house building boom.’

Tertiary students at the University of Melbourne in Melbourne, Wednesday, May 8, 2012. (AAP Image/Julian Smith) NO ARCHIVING 13819219 13871149

FILE PHOTO: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese attends a press conference after visiting Government House to dissolve Parliament and call an election in Canberra, Australia, March 28, 2025. AAP/Mick Tsikas via REUTERS//File Photo

The buzz around negative gearing explained

Peter Dutton appeared to score a hit in the second leaders debate after he grilled Anthony Albanese on whether his government had commissioned modelling around negative gearing changes.

The term negative gearing refers to when the cost of owning a rental property outweighs the income it makes. The investment runs at a loss, but the owners deduct it from their taxable income, resulting in a significant tax saving.

It’s seen to benefit individuals on higher marginal tax rates and encourage buying investment properties.

Mr Albanese ruled out any changes to negative gearing going into the election but Mr Dutton on Wednesday night challenged him on whether it was researched.

The Prime Minister appeared to concede modelling had been done by the Treasury Department but it was not commissioned by his government.

‘Under our public service, we value them coming up with ideas and various assessments, that is what happened. It certainly wasn’t commissioned by us,’ he said.

It’s understood the treasurer’s office asked the Treasury Department last year for a briefing on housing and the report that was returned included a range of policy options, including some around negative gearing and capital gains tax.

Coalition campaign spokesperson James Paterson wasn’t convinced, however, and this morning accused the PM of lying, claiming treasurer Jim Chalmers specifically asked for negative gearing and capital gains tax changes to be modelled.

‘I mean, this is a guy who’s lied about our record when it comes to health, our record when it comes to education. He’s even lied about falling off the stage when it was captured on video,’ Senator Paterson said.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton (right) speaks while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese looks on during the second leaders' debate of the 2025 federal election campaign at the ABC Studios in Parramatta, Sydney, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AAP Image/Pool) NO ARCHIVING, POOL

Albanese travels to Queensland

Anthony Albanese – and his sizable entourage and media pack – have landed in Brisbane this morning following the second leaders debate on Wednesday night.

The Prime Minister will kick off the day campaigning in the seat of Bonner in the city’s east, which is held by the LNP with a marginal 3.4 per cent.

Early on in the campaign the PM visited Peter Dutton’s northern Brisbane seat of Dickson, which the LNP holds on a 4.6 per cent margin.

Mr Dutton has held that seat since 2001 and will go up against Labor’s Ali France, a former journalist and para-athlete.

Also vying for Mr Dutton’s seat are Greens candidate Vinnie Batten and Independent Ellie Smith, who has received financial backing from Climate 200, the fundraising group behind the Teals.