9.25pm:Turnbulls at Olympics event in matching gear

Kara Vickery reports: He has been fundraising to assist with his fight for re-election, but Malcolm Turnbull stepped up to raise money for a different cause tonight — the country’s Olympic hopefuls.

Mr Turnbull, who hit the hustings in the electorate of Deakin, took time out from the campaign trail to host the $30,000-a-table Prime Minister’s Olympic dinner in Melbourne.

It’s the ninth event of its kind to be held, fundraising for the 2016 Australian Olympic Team.

Dawn Fraser arrives at the Prime Minister's Olympic dinner.

Married race walkers Jared and Claire Tallent. Picture: Julie Kiriacoudis

In his address, Mr Turnbull compared the Olympics to the election campaign. “Clearly, the campaign trail and the Olympics are two very different fields of contest,” he said.

“Of course, neither sport nor politics are just about winning or losing.

“Ultimately, they are also about the important things we stand for, the values we represent.”

Cementing their power-couple status, Mr Turnbull and his wife Lucy dressed in matching monochrome suits.

Olympic athletes present included race walker Jared Tallent and Dawn Fraser.

Also present were Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and her partner David Panton, former prime minister John Howard — described by Mr Turnbull as “Australia’s greatest walker” — and Sports Minister Sussan Ley, swimmer Grant Hackett, despite his role as a Seven Network commentator continuing to hang in the balance.

Grant Hackett arrives at the dinner.

In addition to the $3000 per head fee, each table of 10 was asked to make a $27,000 donation to the Australian Sports Foundation to secure a spot at the event.

It’s one of the biggest fundraising events for Australia’s 440 Olympic athletes who will compete in Rio de Janeiro in August.

It was expected to raise $2.4 million.

7.30pm:Solidarity with the marathon runners

Malcolm Turnbull has this evening hosted the Prime Minister’s ninth Olympic dinner in Melbourne in a year that marks the 60th anniversary of the first Olympics held in Australia.

The Prime Minister said the occasion was a chance to celebrate the achievements of Australia’s sporting greats and to project forward to the impending Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Drawing a sporting analogy, Mr Turnbull said all those involved in the long, eight-week campaign now had “appreciation for how the marathon runners must feel as they approach the finish line”.

Malcolm Turnbull and wife Lucy arrive at the Olympic dinner. Picture: Jason Edwards

Mr Turnbull reflected on the famous gesture that Australian track athlete John Landy made in the Australian mile championship in March 1956 when he doubled back to check on fellow runner Ron Clarke who had fallen.

Landy then made up lost ground to win the race in what is widely considered to be one of the greatest moments in Australian sport.

“That is the capacity of sport to inspire, to motivate, to bring out the best in all of us,” Mr Turnbull said. “It symbolises all that is great about the Olympic tradition.”

Cathy Freeman stands on the stage.

Ian Thorpe arrives at the dinner. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Mr Turnbull also paid tribute to some of the nation’s greatest Olympic champions who were in the room including Cathy Freeman, Ian Thorpe and Dawn Fraser.

“In this Olympic year, I am proud of my government’s record supporting our athletes and preparing them for Rio,” he said. “We are absolutely committed to supporting participation in sport from grassroots to the elite level.”

3.04pm:The perils of street walks

A Bill Shorten streetwalk at Maitland’s Green Hills shopping centre in NSW’s Hunter region hasn’t gone entirely to script, but the Opposition Leader received plenty of support as he pressed the flesh with voters.

Just a couple of minutes after arriving a man yelled at Mr Shorten as he made small talk with a family, telling the Labor leader he was “scum”.

“Couldn’t be bothered to go and see the war veterans, could ya?” the man bellowed, in a nod to the recent repatriation ceremony for Vietnam War dead that both leaders missed. Mr Shorten has since apologised for not attending.

Seventeen-year-old Christian Cedergren had been waiting patiently for his chance to say hi to Mr Shorten and, when he finally got his chance, offered a big bear hug and then burst into tears. Christian said he had autism and told Mr Shorten his sister was “severely” disabled. “It’s just so hard,” he said.

“You tell your family that I will move heaven and earth to properly fund disability funding in schools, including autism funding because autism is just one part of who you are,” Mr Shorten told him. “You have so much else going for you. Hang in there.”

Bill Shorten, hugging Christian Cedergren. Pic: Kym Smith.

After the encounter Christian told reporters it had been a “miracle” to meet the Labor leader, saying he was particularly concerned about climate change.

While Mr Shorten took plenty of selfies there was no spur-of-the-moment shopping, although he was particularly taken by some all-season dog beds.

Medicare was the hot topic, with Mr Shorten assuring voters Labor wouldn’t let the government privatise the publicly funded health care scheme.

“Mr Turnbull keeps saying he’s not going to keep privatising Medicare. Well as Bob Hawke says: why do you set up a taskforce if you don’t have a plan?” he said to pensioners.

Malcolm Turnbull has promised voters the government will not sell Medicare, lashing out at Labor’s “scare campaign”.

2.10pm: ‘We’re not downplaying IR’

Malcolm Turnbull has defended his promotion of union reform during the election campaign after the government announced it would embrace the “overwhelming majority” of the 79 recommendations made by the Heydon royal commission.

The Prime Minister was not present at the announcement, made by his Employment Minister Michaelia Cash yesterday at the National Press Club in Canberra.

The government says it is taking up 48 of the recommendations in the final report.

Mr Turnbull today dismissed suggestions the government was deliberately downplaying its response, pointing to the double dissolution trigger bills used to bring on the July 2 election.

These measures would establish a registered organisations commission to oversee unions and employer bodies while also reviving a tougher construction industry regulator in the form of the Australian Building and Construction Commission.

Malcolm Turnbull is well known as a dog lover. Pic: Jason Edwards

Both policies predate the recommendations handed down by former High Court judge Dyson Heydon in his final report of last December.

“Those two important economic reforms which will restore transparency and accountability and honesty to the administration of trade unions and employer organisations and which will restore the rule of law to the construction sector — they are at the very heart of the election,” Mr Turnbull said. “That is the reason we are having a double dissolution. That is the reason we are having an eight-week campaign.”

1.45pm: Funding on the run

The NSW Greens raised almost $5000 in donations at their campaign launch, as leader Richard Di Natale roused the crowd over the need to protect the environment and refugees.

A small but fierce crowd of about 100 Greens members and supporters gathered at Sydney’s Enmore Theatre for the launch with state MPs Jenny Leong, Jamie Parker, Mehreen Faruqi and David Shoebridge and NSW Senator Lee Rhiannon joining the party’s candidates.

The need to create “safer pathways” for refugees, affordable housing and renewable energy were the focus of speeches by Senator Rhiannon and Senator Di Natale.

Richard Di Natale with NSW candidates at a campaign launch in Sydney. Pic: AAP

Firefighter and union head Jim Casey is taking on popular ALP MP Anthony Albanese in a seat he has held since 1996.

The party is hoping to secure a second lower-house seat and another senate spot from NSW and have confirmed it will preference Labor in the Senate and in 139 lower-house seats at the July 2 federal election.

At the launch party officials repeatedly asked the crowd to help them raise $5000 and by lunchtime a little more than $4000 had been donated.

The Greens are to launch their South Australian campaign tomorrow.

1.35pm: Election now in ‘4th quarter’

Malcolm Turnbull has ruled out a fourth debate with Bill Shorten as the election campaign heads into its final two weeks.

The Prime Minister said there were normally three debates during an election period but said there would still be set piece media appearances from both leaders, including his own appearance on the ABC’s Q & A program on Monday night.

“We’ve had three debates,” Mr Turnbull said. “Mr Shorten and I have got lots of other media appearances to do. I’m on Q & A on Monday night, I’ll be going back on to 7.30. I think Mr Shorten has undertaken to appear on 7.30 twice.

“There’s a lot of opportunities for us to express our policies and describe what we’re doing.”

Campaigning in the electorate of Deakin in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, Mr Turnbull said the election had now entered the “fourth quarter” and encouraged people to treat their vote as if it could determine the election result.

“It is a close election ... every vote counts,” Mr Turnbull said. “Treat your vote as though it is the single vote that determines the election.”

He also accused Mr Shorten of spreading an “absurd lie” that the government was planning to privatise Medicare, which he defended as a “core government service.”

Mr Turnbull said Labor had worked with trade unions to scare older Australians on the issue by calling them in the evening to promote its scare campaign.

“Medicare will never ever, ever be privatised,” he said. “Every element of Medicare, every aspect of Medicare that is delivered by government today will continue to be delivered by government in the future. Full stop.”

1.23pm:Shorten targets marginals

Bill Shorten is focusing on two very marginal NSW seats held by Liberal MPs but now notionally Labor after a redistribution.

Kicking off the day in Dobell, on the central coast, the Opposition Leader spruiked yet another glossy brochure outlining his party’s plan for the region. Labor is fighting to take the seat off government backbencher Karen McNamara, who holds it on a -0.2 per cent margin after picking it up from dumped Labor MP Craig Thomson in 2013.

Bill Shorten in Wyong. Pic: Kim Smith

Next stop is Maitland, on the mid-north coast, which is in the seat of Paterson.

Local Lib MP Bob Baldwin is retiring from politics and holds it on a -0.4 per cent margin — a dramatic reduction after he won it by 9.8 per cent in 2013. The loss of an incumbent should play into Labor’s hands. There’s little wonder Mr Shorten made the trip today.

1.06pm: Shorten has ‘no plan’

Malcolm Turnbull says Bill Shorten failed in last night’s Facebook debate because he did not outline a clear plan to support economic growth, warning of uncertainty on the horizon posed by developments like the looming Brexit vote in the UK.

The Prime Minister said it was important for government to live within its means by running a responsible budget, saying this was a necessary precondition to justify large spending commitments.

“You might have seen last night in the debate with Mr Shorten, he failed to provide any element or fragment of a plan or a policy that would support economic growth at all,” Mr Turnbull said.

Malcolm Turnbull and netballer in selfie. Pic: Jason Edwards

“He had a lot of complaints, a lot of proposals to spend more money, but he has clearly not even turned his mind to how we ensure that we maintain strong economic growth in these times of great opportunity but also great challenge.”

Mr Turnbull said there was significant economic uncertainty ahead in a bid to portray Labor as a risk to the nation coming into the final two weeks of the election campaign.

“Who knows what will happen with the Brexit vote in the UK? It could have an enormous disruption in the European Union, one of our largest trading partners,” he said.

“There are a big changes afoot in the world. There are great opportunities. There are many headwinds. Clearly you need an economic plan that sets out how you are going to drive those jobs and growth over the future. We have that.”

12.45pm: Sporting themes emerge

Malcolm Turnbull has taken his campaign to the seat of Deakin in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, announcing $10.5 million for an indoor netball centre to benefit women’s sports.

Hours after Bill Shorten chatted to netballers in Wyong, the Prime Minister arrived at the HE Parker netball complex in Heathmont wearing a leather jacket and accompanied by wife Lucy, mingling with families who had taken their children out for Saturday sport at the outdoor facility.

Meeting local Liberal MP Michael Sukkar at the venue, Mr Turnbull handed out medals to young netballers and made some brief remarks to those in attendance.

Malcolm Turnbull meets some young netball players in Melbourne. Pic: Jason Edwards

Speaking into a microphone set up on the outdoor courts, Mr Turnbull said the new funding would prevent the cancellation of games due to bad weather, with 42 per cent of Wednesday night games having being abandoned last year.

At a press conference a short time later, Mr Turnbull said the contribution would help support women’s sport.

He also made the point it was important for children to keep active, given the health challenges presented by obesity.

“There’s no antidote to that better than sporting activity, healthy activity and you can see it through all of these girls and boys around us here,” Mr Turnbull said.

12.20pm: Labor at a glance?

Labor is preparing to launch its campaign in the marginal western Sydney seat of Lindsay tomorrow, but Newspoll shows both the opposition and Liberal Party are losing votes there to Nick Xenophon’s new party.

Bill Shorten was asked about his message to Lindsay voters attracted to the Nick Xenophon Team, and replied: “Labor’s got the best policies for Lindsay.”

He then went on to list a number of policies, including:

- “real action” on climate change and renewable energy;

- “properly funded” schools;

— no “$100,000 degrees”;

- Medicare is not privatised;

- “downward pressure” on the price of medicines;

— lift the childcare rebate;

— access to a fibre NBN.

11.55am: ‘Just the two of us’

It sounds like Bill Shorten has a novel idea for another leaders’ debate with Malcolm Turnbull during the election campaign.

“That is why I want another debate in public where just him and I, just calling it out to each other, what do we think, what do you think, answer questions,” the Opposition Leader said as he campaigned in the marginal NSW central coast seat of Dobell.

It’s not entirely clear how this would play out — would the two leaders ask each other questions? Would they catch each other up on “lies” and “backflips”?

We’re sure we’ll hear more from Mr Shorten in the coming days.

Bill Shorten takes questions during a press conference on NSW’s central coast.

11.45am: Shorten warns on plebiscite

Bill Shorten has accused some critics of gay marriage of being “motivated by homophobia” after he declared in last night’s Facebook debate that he didn’t want to give “haters” a chance to “come out from under the rock” during a plebiscite.

The Opposition Leader denied he had made a link between the shooting massacre in Orlando, which targeted a gay nightclub, and the “hate” that could reveal itself in a “no” gay marriage campaign, saying Australia was not faced with the same circumstances as the United States.

Debating Malcolm Turnbull last night, Mr Shorten said: “We’ve seen two terrible events in the last week have shown that hate and extremism does exist in modern societies. I don’t want to give haters a chance to come out from under the rock and make life harder for LGBTI people or their families to somehow question the legitimacy of their relationship.”

Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten during last night’s leaders’ debate. Pic: AAP

Asked today if he was concerned there could be “hate crimes” if Australia votes in a gay marriage plebiscite, as the government wants, Mr Shorten said: “I don’t make that comparison, there is not the same situation in Australia. But what I do recognise is that if we give the green light to some taxpayer-funded debate with contrasting ideas on marriage equality, you would have to live on another planet if you just assumed that some of the critics of marriage equality are not motivated by homophobia.”

Mr Shorten claimed the Prime Minister was telling Australians to “settle for second best” by holding a $161 million plebiscite instead of a vote in parliament, saying some critics of marriage equality had “extreme views”.

“Malcolm Turnbull is too chicken to vote in parliament in the way that his head and his heart would otherwise indicate,” he said.

11.20am: Labor campaign ‘paying off’

Bill Shorten says the Labor Party’s “issues” are “beginning to bite” across Australia, as the opposition faces an uphill battle in key government-held marginal seats.

The latest Newspoll, revealed in The Weekend Australian, shows Labor is not even halfway to winning 10 of the government-held marginals the party has been targeting.

But a defiant Opposition Leader insists the ALP “can win” on July 2 despite him needing to pick up 21 seats to form a majority government.

Bill Shorten, with lamingtons, at a Wyong netball park. Pic: AAP

“Where I travel around Australia, I think that the steep climb that Labor has is actually paying off. What we see is that the issues that I’m talking about and that the Labor Party is talking about, the issues are beginning to bite,” Mr Shorten said.

“People are beginning to understand that there is a real difference between Labor and Liberal. People are beginning to realise that if you want to save Medicare, vote Labor. If you want proper National Broadband Network, vote Labor. And as we learnt in the debate last night, if you don’t want to pay $100,000 university degrees, vote Labor.”

10.06am: Marriage equality reaction

Same-sex marriage proved to be a key issue for people on both Facebook and Twitter as the party leaders battled it out in last night’s news.com and Facebook debate.

According to statistics from both sites, a question on marriage equality caused one of the biggest reactions from users during the debate.

Complaints over internet speed and the National Broadband Network were also popular on Twitter causing both #NBN and #fraudband to climb to the top five most tweeted terms.

9.45am: Briggs under threat

South Australian Mayo MP Jamie Briggs has hit the campaign trail early after a special Newspoll found Nick Xenophon’s new party is set to win his seat.

Taken exclusively for The Weekend Australian, Newspoll reveals that a 14.5 per cent swing against Mr Briggs puts the Nick Xenophon Team ahead by 52 per cent to 48.

9.10am: Making Australians healthier

After being declared the people’s choice at last night’s first Facebook leaders’ debate, Bill Shorten kicks off his day in Sydney and will announce a $300 million, four-year preventive health package.

All political parties like plans and today Labor has a five-point plan to create healthy communities and reduce chronic disease — the country’s leading cause of illness, disability and death.

We’ve broken the plan down for you:

1. Invest in 50 “healthy communities” across Australia (e.g. making healthy food options available in schools, build cycling and walking paths);

2. Establish the nation’s first national physical activity strategy and a national nutrition framework to tackle obesity (including a $5 million commitment to a Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation);

3. Expand the Better Health Channel into a nationwide platform;

4. Push to reduce smoking rates, targeting at-risk communities (including $20m for a national tobacco campaign and $30m through primary health networks for indigenous Australians and others will mental illness);

5. Establish a national alcohol strategy to tackle harmful alcohol use.

Malcolm Turnbull, pictured during last night’s News.com and Facebook debate, heads today for the Melbourne seat of Deakin. Pic Kym Smith

9.00am: Politicians ‘lack guts’

Mining magnate Gina Rinehart says Australian politicians don’t “have the guts” to tackle government spending.

Ms Rinehart said the cost of government was growing rapidly and this issue has been overlooked in the election campaign.

“There is one giant cost slab that isn’t decreasing: government,” Ms Rinehart told the Saturday Telegraph.

No guts: Gina Rinehart

Ms Rinehart also took aim at the level of government red tape which needs to be overcome for developments.

She says her $10 billion iron ore project at Roy Hill has been slowed down by the around 400 government approvals needed.

“India has the guts to do what it’s doing to cut at least federal red tape, with the consequent immense benefits to its people, driving investment, jobs, economic growth and living standards — why can’t Australia?” she said.