Anthony Albanese snaps at reporter after he is pressed on major question every Aussie wants answered

Anthony Albanese has snapped at a reporter when pressed about his election promise that power bills would come down by $275 this year.

When the reporter objected that Mr Albanese wasn’t answering the question put to him the Prime Minister cut him off. 

‘I know that, but you get to do the questions and I get to do the answers,’ he said during the press conference on Tuesday.

‘That is the way it works.’

The reporter originally asked if it was time Mr Albanese conceded his 2022 election promise Australians would enjoy a $275 reduction in energy bills by this year wasn’t going to happen. 

Mr Albanese instead of talking about a price drop from 2022 began listing the measures his government and other Labor state governments have taken to soften the relentless price hikes since that time. 

‘One of the things that we did was have a $300 energy bill relief. The Queensland government under Steven Miles had $1,000 additional to that,’ he said.

‘That was opposed by the Coalition,’ Mr Albanese said before the reporter interjected and got the curt reply.

After silencing the reporter Mr Albanese continued.

‘We have delivered that (energy bill relief),’ he said.

‘That was opposed. Energy prices would have been higher if Peter Dutton was in government.’

Mr Albanese was in Queensland to promote his government’s $7.2billion pledge to fix a 1,700km stretch of the Bruce Highway, which has been dubbed one of Australia’s deadliest roads.

He showed little patience with another reporter who on Monday asked if the ‘build back better’ slogan used by the government in relation to the highway was taken from US President Joe Biden’s election campaign.

‘You should be cautious about just reading out things that are sent from the LNP,’ Mr Albanese replied.

Mr Albanese is embarking on a pre-election multistate blitz, which will also cover Western Australian and the Northern Territory in the upcoming week as well as a string of morning show appearances.

It comes after Mr Albanese renewed calls for federal parliamentary terms to be extended from three years to four.

A Roy Morgan poll on Tuesday showed the Albanese government is facing a wipeout – with the Coalition ahead 53 per cent to Labor’s 47 per cent on a two-party-preferred basis.

Appearing on Channel Seven’s Sunrise on Tuesday, Mr Albanese indicated a re-elected Labor would pursue longer parliamentary terms, and ending the right of government’s to call early polls.

‘We should have four-year fixed terms, like they do in most states and territories, to avoid these games (on election dates).’

But any such change would require a successful referendum – something the government would be less than confident about after the failure of its Voice referendum.

Mr Albanese was asked by Sunrise host Michael Usher about when he plans to hold the next election, amid growing speculation that April 12 is firming as his preferred date.

‘(The date) will be May 17 or before,’ the Prime Minister responded, with the May date being the latest possible.