Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urges Australians to ‘do their part’ to help fuel crisis in address to nation

Anthony Albanese has urged Australians to go about their business as normal but warned that “the months ahead may not be easy” in a national address designed to reassure and keep the economy running during the war-induced fuel crisis.

The Prime Minister asked people to conserve fuel as the economic shocks linger amid an uncertain war strategy from the US, in a three-minute pre-recorded video broadcast on Wednesday evening that contained no new policy announcements.

But he warned that “the months ahead may not be easy” and the economic shocks from the war would linger.

“Australia’s not an active participant in this war but all Australians are paying higher prices because of it. I know that you’re seeing this at the servo and at the supermarket and I understand farmers and truckies, small businesses and families are doing it tough,” he said.

“We are working to bring the price of fuel down, to make more fuel here and to keep it on shore, and get more fuel here using our strong trading relationships with our region to bring more petrol, diesel and fertiliser to Australia.”

Unlike the health crisis of COVID when people were kept physically distanced, the government wants to keep Australia open for business and the economy ticking over.

It was “the Australian way that people want to do their bit”, Mr Albanese said, and the best way to do so was to go about business and life as normal, while thinking of others in the community, the bush and critical industries.

“Enjoy your Easter and if you’re hitting the road, don’t take more fuel than you need. Just fill up like you normally would.

“And over coming weeks, if you can switch to catching the train or bus or tram to work do so. That builds our reserves, and it saves fuel for people who have no choice but to drive – farmers and miners and tradies who need diesel every single day, and all those shift workers and nurses who do so much for our country.”

His ministers are paring back their planned travel across the country during the run up to the Budget to set an example of responsible fuel use.

Ministers still need to travel, you “just need to run the common sense lens over it”, one said, noting there were times when eyeballing their state counterparts couldn’t be done via Teams.

International trips have been cut back to bare essentials – Mr Albanese confirmed to Parliament he’s cancelled a planned visit to Gallipoli for Anzac Day – as bureaucrats are preparing more video messages for ministers to send to events, and even trips to Perth after May have got question marks next to them.

Canberra-based Assistant Mininister Andrew Leigh had a novel suggestion for his colleagues returning for the parliamentary sittings in May: “I certainly encourage people to take the Murray’s bus if they’re coming into Canberra. It’s an efficient way of getting here and a very pleasant way of traveling.”

Asked whether he would counsel Coalition MPs to follow suit, Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said there were mixed messages coming from ministers.

“If the Government thinks we need to do rationing, then they should say that up front,” he said.

“The way to get rid of confusion is to have more transparency. That’s what we need.”

Under the national fuel security plan that Premiers agreed with the Prime Minister on Monday, the current level 2 status urges people to “make voluntary choices to use less and avoid the impact of higher fuel prices”.

The government on Wednesday unveiled a package of business support measures including pauses on tax debt collection, payment plans, making it easier to seek relief, and extended arrangements so small businesses can access lines of credit faster.

The business and banking sectors have also come to the table with promises to work proactively with customers, suppliers and employees to ease the pressure.

They urged people and small businesses struggling with higher costs to reach out for help or debt relief early, before they reached a crisis point.

“We can’t control the war in the Middle East. We can’t stop the war in the Middle East, but what a responsible government can do is to do everything that it can, to shield its citizens and to shield small businesses in these times,” Small Business Minister Anne Aly said.

The measures are similar to those put in place during COVID to help businesses keep running.

The Opposition would support “sensible measures”, Mr Taylor said, but it was likely that small businesses would need more help.

“Relief’s important, but we need an economy that works for hard-working small business people,” he said, citing record levels of insolvencies over recent years.

Analysts are warning that even if the government wants to avoid mandatory limits on fuel use, it may swiftly become necessary after Easter.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said governments, businesses and others were working closely as the war dragged on to avoid COVID-style interventions.

“A lot of the work that we’re doing, if not all of the work that we’re doing, is to try and avoid some of those harsher, heavier-handed interventions,” he said.

Despite this desire to avoid it, polling suggests people would back fuel rationing if shortages worsen, with 61 per cent in favour according to a survey of Victorians by The Agenda Group.

Privately, ministers concede they are very worried about the situation towards the end of April.

Even if the Strait of Hormuz reopens immediately, the restrictions on shipping over the past month mean there could still be disruptions flowing through the fuel supply chains.

“The whole world is hanging on the end of this war – the consequences will linger for a bit longer than that,” Dr Chalmers said.

Treasury is now modelling multiple scenarios contemplating the economic hit from the substantial oil shock.

Early warning signs could include businesses laying off apprentices, while higher food prices from farmers planting smaller crops due to diesel or fertiliser shortages won’t be felt for at least six months.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen told Parliament that none of the 81 shiploads of fuel scheduled to arrive in Australia during April had been cancelled.

Dr Chalmers foreshadowed more measures to build up Australia’s fuel storages and resilience would be coming, saying Cabinet wouldn’t “wait to the very end of this oil shock” to turn their minds to the issues.

Petrol prices around the country started to fall on Wednesday as the 26-cent cut to fuel excise came into effect, despite warnings from ministers it could take a week to flow to consumers.

Australians spent 10 per cent more on fuel in March than in February, according to banking data.

But consumers aren’t yet cutting back spending elsewhere.

“That resilience is clearly there across the economy. But obviously, the longer this goes on, the greater the likelihood that will change,” Australian Banking Association chief executive Simon Birmingham said.