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The Albanese Labor Government is strengthening skills and training for Australians – with Free TAFE enrolments surging past 800,000.

Since the Government established Free TAFE in 2023 there have been more than 814,000 course enrolments, with strong growth in enrolment and course completion numbers across the country in qualifications that are building the numbers of skilled workers in priority industries – including nursing, aged care, construction, cyber security and early childhood education.

Another important milestone in the program has been reached with more than a quarter of a million course completions – 258,000 – so far, following the release of data from Quarter 1, 2026.

The milestones demonstrate the strong interest in Free TAFE from Australians, and the difference it is making for those looking to start a new career, retrain, or gain qualifications they would otherwise have faced barriers to accessing.

Free TAFE is creating opportunities for Australians from all walks of life. Young people aged 24 and under make up 35 per cent of Free TAFE enrolments, while 24 per cent of enrolments are from job seekers. Regional and remote communities are benefitting too, with 32 per cent and 2 per cent of enrolments respectively.

The data has also revealed a jump of around 15,000 enrolments in Free TAFE construction courses compared to the previous quarter, with states and territories rolling out additional Free TAFE Construction places funded by the Albanese Government.

When the Government came to office, the former Coalition government had left skills shortages in Australia at a 50-year high, with no plan to turn them around – in fact, they had cut billions from TAFE and training during their time in office.

Free TAFE was introduced by the Albanese Government as a key measure in both turning around these shortages, and removing the cost barriers that have held people back from pursuing new qualifications and careers.

Last year, the Government legislated permanent Free TAFE, delivering 100,000 places every year from 2027 so that Australians can continue to benefit from the opportunities a TAFE qualification offers.

The Liberals, Nationals and One Nation all voted against making Free TAFE permanent, and have failed to offer an alternative to support the hundreds of thousands of Australians who’ve benefitted from the program.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese

“Free TAFE is changing lives – that’s why Labor established it, and why we’ve made it permanent.

“Free TAFE makes sure Australians get the training they need for good, well-paid jobs and the skills that can help build Australia’s future.”

Minister for Skills and Training, Andrew Giles

“When we came to office the Coalition left us the worst skills shortages that Australia had seen in 50 years. Since then, the percentage of occupations in shortage have kept coming down, from 36 per cent in 2023 to 29 per cent in 2025.

“Free TAFE is at the heart of this – not only building the pipeline of skilled workers, but opening up opportunity for more Australians to lift their income and find secure work for their future.

“The contrast with the three right-wing parties couldn’t be starker. All of them – Liberals, Nationals and One Nation – voted no to permanent Free TAFE, meaning they went to the last election promising nothing for Free TAFE and nothing to support Australians’ skills.”

Assistant Minister for Defence, Peter Khalil, will travel to the United States this week to represent the Albanese Government at the Australian American Leadership Dialogue (AALD).

Held annually since 1993, the AALD brings together senior Australian and American leaders to exchange perspectives on key policy issues, including economics and trade, security and defence, foreign policy, innovation and technology, energy and climate, health, cybersecurity, and emerging global challenges.

The AALD provides an important opportunity to strengthen collaboration on major defence and national security initiatives, while ensuring Australia’s strategic perspectives and policy priorities are clearly communicated as part of our bilateral engagement with the United States.

During his visit, Assistant Minister Khalil will also meet with US Administration officials, and political leaders at both a state and federal level to discuss opportunities to deepen cooperation between Australia and the United States.

Australia’s Alliance with the US is fundamental to our national security and we are working together to grow our defence and security partnership, including through AUKUS, address shared strategic challenges and strengthen regional stability.

Assistant Minister for Defence, Peter Khalil:

“Held every year since 1993, the Australian American Leadership Dialogue is an important forum for advancing cooperation between Australia and the United States on the issues that matter most to our shared security and prosperity.

“The Australia–United States Alliance, now in its 75th year, is built on trust, shared values and decades of cooperation in support of a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific.

“As we confront an increasingly complex strategic environment, engagement with our American partners is essential to our alliance.

“AUKUS remains a central pillar of our defence and strategic cooperation, and this week’s discussions will help ensure continued alignment on this vital program.”

The Victorian Greens have unveiled the details of their bold plan to bring down the cost of buying a home.

The Greens are proposing to tax ultra-wealthy property investors who own more than $5 million worth of residential investment properties, and use it to abolish stamp duty on homes for people to live in.

The Greens plan comes ahead of this year’s state election where young people locked out of home ownership are looking for bold policies.
The Greens policy helps rebalance the scales of a broken housing system that is set up to funnel profits to banks and wealthy investors instead of helping people who need somewhere affordable to live.

Stamp duty has been heavily criticised by economists as a highly ineffective tax that puts a huge upfront cost on people, making it harder to buy, move or downsize.

The Greens are proposing a system that’s fairer, simpler and built for people, not profits. It starts by abolishing stamp duty on the average home, aimed at eventually phasing it out altogether.

The Greens entire ‘Home You Can Afford’ plan:

Cut stamp duty for owner occupiers: abolishing stamp duty for homes up to $1.1 million, and reduced stamp duty on a sliding scale up to $1.6 million.

Introduce an ‘ultra-wealth’ tax to pay for it: increase land tax to 5.3% for property investors that own more than $5 million in residential investment properties, raising $6.4 billion over the decade.

Stop the demolition and build more public housing: more than double the number of public homes – building over 88,000 public homes, maintaining and upgrading existing public housing with an initial investment of $4 billion.

Cap rents: limiting how much rents can be increased in any one year capped at wage growth (or inflation, whichever is lower).

Victorian Greens housing spokesperson, Gabrielle de Vietri:

“People are working hard and still can’t afford a home. We want to bring down the cost of buying a home by cutting stamp duty and taxing ultra wealthy property investors to pay for it.

“If you can afford $5 million worth of investment properties, we think you can pay a little bit more to make housing more affordable for everyone else.

“If young people and renters are ever going to be able to afford a home, we need to bring down the cost of buying a home.

“Stamp duty is a huge barrier for people buying their first home, moving or downsizing. You shouldn’t be slapped with a massive tax bill from the government before you even get your keys.”

Melbourne renters are being slugged with the fastest rent increases in the country, with new figures showing the city’s median weekly rent jumped by more than $20 (3.5 per cent) to $600 in the June quarter.

The Victorian Greens say today’s figures are proof that Labor has failed to protect renters from unlimited rent hikes, with landlords continuing to jack up rents simply because they can.

Independent modelling by the Parliamentary Budget Office shows that if Victoria froze rents for two years from March 2026 and permanently capped future rent increases to wage growth, the average Victorian renter would save $15,590 by 2030 and more than $120,000 by 2040.

Quotes attributable to Victorian Greens spokesperson for Renting, Gabrielle de Vietri:

“Renters keep getting hit with outrageous rent increases simply because landlords know they can get away with it under Labor.

“These figures make one thing crystal clear: we urgently need rent caps.

“Rent caps would save the average Victorian renter more than $15,500 over the next four years. That’s money people could spend raising their kids, paying the bills or saving for a home—instead of paying off their landlord’s house.

“Renters don’t need more excuses. They need lower rents.

“The federal government’s housing reforms haven’t even kicked in yet. These rent hikes aren’t about absorbing higher costs—they’re landlords taking the piss because nothing is stopping them.

“Victorian renters deserve a government that’s on their side. Labor will always side with the property industry because they are funded by them to stay in power. The Greens are the only ones with the guts to do what it takes to tackle the housing crisis – cap rents, build public housing, end the special treatment for property investors and corporations.”

Background

The Parliamentary Budget Office estimates a two-year rent freeze from March 2026 followed by permanent caps linked to wage growth would save the median Victorian renter:

$15,590 by 2030

$53,517 by 2035

$120,406 by 2040.

Rent controls are a key pillar of the Victorian Greens election policy plan leading up to the 2026 Victorian State election, where the Greens are tipped to win more seats from both Labor and the Liberals. The Greens policy includes:

an initial 2-year rent freeze to give wages the chance to catch up to rents followed by a cap on rent increases to go up no more than the wage growth or CPI, whichever is lowest, of that year in any one year.

Tie rent increases to the property, not the tenant – so renters can’t be kicked out for a landlord to put the rent up.

A ban on rent increases for two years at the start of every tenancy, to give renters security when they move house.

The sixth hearing of the Greens-led Senate inquiry into intergenerational housing inequity, held in Melbourne today, heard stark evidence of young people no longer able to plan their futures in the face of soaring rents, falling wages and precarious employment.

New data released today revealed Australians face record-high rents across all capital cities, while real wages have fallen by 5% since March 2021.

Additional evidence to the committee today showed:

• A person in their thirties now is earning roughly the same amount as someone in their thirties ten years ago (adjusted for inflation). In other words, those born in the 1990s are the first cohort in Australian history to have experienced almost no growth in incomes compared to those born a decade earlier at the same age.
• Many young people are experiencing distress because they no longer have a future they can plan for because of the precarity of housing and employment.
• As of 2023, 61% of non-homeowning Australians want to own their own home but are not certain that they will ever be able to. 
• Housing wealth transfer is one of the biggest drivers of inequality. Between 2003 and 2022, 22% of all growth in national wealth was accrued to just 4- 5% of wealthy and disproportionately older households.
• Young Australians cannot buy homes in 2026 because they live at the end of a decades-long process in which tax, public spending and industrial relations settings work against them.
• Housing inequity is also a gender issue. On average it takes women three years  longer than a man to save for a deposit for a medium priced home.
• Labor and Liberal governments have failed renters: 70% of renters are in financial stress yet there are no requirements for rentals to be safe and liveable.
• Younger Australians aged 18-44 are 2.5-3.5 times more likely to be in housing stress than those aged over 65
• Poor rental conditions are detrimental to quality of life, impacting renters’ physical and mental health.
• Private rentals are often insecure, unaffordable and inaccessible to young people with histories of homelessness, trauma or involvement in out-of-home care, and discrimination, lack of rental history and limited income further exclude them. 
• Rental insecurity has an intergenerational impact – one inquiry witness shared that their children have lived in 17 homes during their lifetime.
• Aboriginal housing bodies’ evidence that governments need to stop “managing homelessness” and instead end homelessness.
• The Federal Government’s Housing Australia Future Fund (HAFF) doesn’t address the scale of the crisis, with a shortfall of 640,000 homes.
• The $600 million under Round 3 of the HAFF for Indigenous housing is insufficient to meet community housing needs in Victoria, let alone nationwide, and many community housing providers lack the scale to participate in the HAFF.

Greens spokesperson for finance, housing and homelessness and Senator for South Australia, Barbara Pocock:

“This inquiry has shown us how cooked the housing crisis is and how many young people are living in an emergency when it comes to housing and falling real wages.

“Millennials are the first Australian generation to be worse off than their parents. This is a system stacked against younger generations who have lost the intergenerational housing lottery. 

“People across the country are being hit with a 6% increase in rents year on year while real wages have fallen by 5% over the past five years. Households are caught in a rent/wage squeeze everywhere – not just in the big cities.

“It’s no wonder young people are giving up on planning their future, let alone the dream of owning a home one day.

“Renters are literally paying the price for a landlord’s market. Renters don’t have a buffer: they are the buffer while landlords and investors are protected by property.

“Record high rents across the country are proof of a housing crisis out of control. People on low and middle incomes can’t afford to live where they want to or anywhere near where they work. 

“For decades, successive governments have turbocharged house prices and driven up rents, putting billions of dollars in the pockets of property investors, property developers and big banks. 

“Labor needs to actually do something for renters. They must introduce rent caps and invest directly into building good quality homes and renting them to people who need them at prices they can actually afford.”

The Greens say the deal will help India expand its growing cache of nuclear weapons, heightening global nuclear risk and undermining Labor’s claims that the deal will promote peace

The signing of the ‘Administrative Arrangement to enable further uranium exports to India’ by the Albanese Labor Government today is rewarding nuclear proliferation, by a person who opposed the dangerous trade a decade ago.

India refuses to sign either the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons or the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. This is because India has an estimated 190 nuclear weapons that it refuses to allow international inspectors to document.

The Albanese Labor Government is legitimising India’s dangerous stance on nuclear weapons through this deal. While the Government is claiming Australian exported uranium will not be for military use, it will be used to supplement the Indian supply so alternate nuclear stockpiles can be diverted to weapons. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute estimated over the past year alone India has made 10 additional nuclear warheads.

There has only been one shipment of uranium to India since Labor and the Liberals initially opened the door to the trade a decade ago. This minimal trade is due to concerns that Australian uranium could be used to build Indian nuclear weapons. Today’s expansion of what has been proven to be a failed and dangerous trade is concerning.

In 2011, following the Fukushima disaster and increasing concerns about the dangers of the nuclear industry, Albanese opposed the proposal to allow uranium sales to India saying: “Under these circumstances, it is absurd that we should be expanding ours.” That is just as true today.

Senator David Shoebridge, Greens spokesperson on Foreign Affairs said:

“Labor is no friend of the campaign to end nuclear weapons. Right now we are seeing Albanese expanding uranium exports to a country that has nearly 200 nuclear weapons and refuses to sign the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons or the Test Ban Treaty.

“By giving weight to the non-binding “nuclear suppliers group” Australia is actively undermining the legally enforceable principles set out in the non-proliferation treaty. Make no mistake this harms global efforts to control, and ultimately eliminate, nuclear weapons.

“The Albanese Labor Government has shown it will steamroll over the anti-nuclear movement whenever it suits them. They are doing it today with uranium sales to India and have doubled down on nuclear powered weapons with AUKUS.

”Prime Minister Albanese is doing more to promote nuclear weapons and the nuclear industry in this country than any other Australian Prime Minister since Menzies, who begged the UK for access to nuclear weapons.

“This sad surrender shows the hollowness of the Albanese Labor Government.

“When the Liberals and One Nation pushed for nuclear power Labor managed to oppose it and highlight the risks, but when President Trump or Prime Minister Modhi put the slightest pressure on them they started cosplaying Dutton, and asking where to sign.”