The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, will announce a major expansion of the federal government's paid work experience program, providing financial assistance to students in 10 fields including physiotherapy, speech pathology and clinical psychology for mandatory placements.
The announcement will be made in a speech to open the Labor national conference on Thursday, where Albanese will cast 'practical' policies as key to combating anxiety and frustration gripping the electorate.
Conference agenda and platform debates
Labor MPs, trade unionists and rank-and-file members will use the triennial conference to thrash out the party's policy agenda for the next three years. Deals between factional powerbrokers are expected to avert major flare-ups, though tension remains ahead of Saturday's debate on the party's position on Israel and Palestine.
A high-level commitment to increase taxes on gas exports and wind back fuel tax credits are set to be enshrined in the official party platform, setting a long-term expectation for the parliamentary party to act.
Student placement expansion details
Students in ten extra courses will receive up to $338.60 a week during their clinical or professional placements, starting 1 July 2027. The courses are: clinical psychology, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology, paramedicine, radiography, pharmacy, rehabilitation therapies, audiology and podiatry. The program is currently limited to teaching, nursing, midwifery and social work.
The expansion comes after pressure from MPs including David Pocock and Helen Haines, who last month tabled a 43,000-person signature calling for allied health courses to be included.
Gaza debate and protests
Jewish groups and Israel's embassy in Canberra are publicly pressuring the party to water-down the draft text, which they claim is not critical enough of Hamas' role in the Gaza war, while pro-Palestine supporters within Labor are pushing to strengthen the language. Senior Labor figures believe the draft version strikes the right balance and are reluctant to bend to either group, making a contested debate on the conference floor unlikely.
A Students for Palestine protest calling for a stop to arms trade with Israel is planned for Thursday afternoon outside the Adelaide Convention Centre, which will have beefed-up security for the 3000-person conference.
Albanese's speech and policy contrasts
In his speech, Albanese will attempt to draw a clear contrast between Labor and its political opponents, in particular One Nation, warning that 'raging against a system' without a plan to fix it doesn't 'take the country forward'.
'I understand that for many Australians right now, looking to the future runs second to the immediate pressures they are under,' the prime minister will tell the conference, according to a draft version supplied to Guardian Australia.
'That is why our focus remains squarely on helping with the cost of living, on the practical measures that matter to people and make a positive difference to their lives.'
Platform debates on climate and gambling
After Kate Ellis is installed as the new Labor president on Thursday morning, the 400 conference delegates will start debating the text of the 126-page draft platform, starting with economic and climate policies on Thursday.
The section of the draft platform that commits Labor to securing a 'fairer return' for natural resources is expected to feature in the final text, effectively binding the Albanese government to eventually act on the campaign to increase taxes on gas exports. Left faction sources were optimistic a proposal to 'remove disincentives for decarbonisation' would also make the final text after it was excluded from the draft version.
The left is discussing pushing for even stronger positions in tackling online gambling harm, including a national regulator, ahead of a scheduled debate on Friday. The draft platform already goes further than the government's gambling advertising legislation with a commitment to address inducements offered by wagering companies.
