Andrew Leigh

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
2CC RADIO CANBERRA, BREAKFAST WITH STEPHEN CENATIEMPO
TUESDAY, 13 JANUARY 2026

SUBJECTS: Combatting Antisemitism; Hate and Extremism Bill; National Gun Buyback Scheme; Gun Law Reforms; Supermarket Price Gouging

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury and the Member for Fenner, Andrew Leigh. Andrew, Happy New Year!

ANDREW LEIGH: Happy New Year Stephen, great to be back with you.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Now, it's been announced - it was announced yesterday by the Prime Minister that Parliament will be recalled early to address this Combating Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Bill 2026. Now, this was obviously drafted in the aftermath of the Bondi attack on 14th December. I got a couple of problems with this. Firstly, my question is what difference does it make if this legislation is passed on the 19th of January or the 3rd of February? It's not going to make any material difference?

ANDREW LEIGH: We need to crack down on hate speech Stephen. We need to do so as quickly as possible. The Prime Minister's determination ever since the horrendous Bondi attacks has been to act swiftly in the interest of stamping out antisemitism.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Well, he's done anything but. I mean, look at the Royal Commission. It took him over three weeks to decide that that was going to happen after saying it never would.

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, he made an immediate announcement that Dennis Richardson would take lead a review of our national security agencies. That'll now be folded into the Royal Commission but our focus has been on ensuring that we get the gun buyback in place, and that'll be part of the legislation before Parliament next week and then basically crack down on hate speech.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

Opinion Piece

More help to cut our food bills

Published in The Daily Telegraph

12 January 2026

After a decade of Coalition inaction, grocery prices soared while competition was left in the bargain bin. The Albanese government has been working hard to fix a system that left shoppers, farmers and suppliers short-changed.

Let's put the claims on the conveyor belt and scan the facts.

During the Coalition's term in government, Australia became a more concentrated economy. Big companies got bigger, and consumers paid the price.

That era is over.

The ACCC's recent supermarket inquiry confirmed what shoppers long suspected - concentrated market power has weakened competition.

The Albanese government agreed in principle to all recommendations, and we're getting on with fixing the problem.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
3AW RADIO MELBOURNE, MORNINGS WITH HEIDI MURPHY
MONDAY, 5 JANUARY 2026

SUBJECTS: Albanese Government cracking down on subscription traps; Bondi Terror Attack; Richardson Review; Venezuela

HEIDI MURPHY: Australians are subscribing to more and more digital services. We're told the average is 3.7 subscriptions per household. It's costing us at least 78 bucks a month as of late in 2025. It's always easy enough to sign up for these various things, but it's when you try to cancel that you have to navigate some pretty confusing web pages, some pretty detailed fine print and cop the question of whether you are really sure about this quite a few times.

According to the Consumer Policy Research Centre, three in four of us with subscriptions have had a negative experience when trying to cancel them. If you've got a fool-proof way that always works for you, please share it with the rest of us, 133 693.

This thing of making it hard to cancel is called a 'subscription trap'. It isn't currently illegal, but the federal government is trying to make a move in the space trying to ban subscription traps and other hidden fees. On the line is Dr Andrew Leigh, Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury. Andrew, thanks for your time.

ANDREW LEIGH: Real pleasure Heidi. Great to be with you.

HEIDI MURPHY: What's it going to look like?

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, the idea is that it should be as easy to cancel your subscription as it was to sign up. But right now you've got Melbourne gyms that are saying you can sign up on the app, but if you quit you have to phone a person. You've got all kinds of what they call confirmshaming processes, where when you try to cancel the real cancellation link is greyed out and the ‘I've changed my mind and I'd like to stay with you’ link is the easy-to-click one. We've got many Australians, as you've said, who found it difficult to cancel subscriptions and I've even heard stories of people who cancel their credit card because it's easier than cancelling the subscriptions themselves.

The Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

New Year's Resolutions Shouldn't Come With A Cancellation Nightmare

5 January 2026      

2026 is the year that unfair trading practices like subscription traps will be banned thanks to the Albanese Government.

As Australians make New Year’s resolutions, many will sign up for services designed to help build better habits. A gym membership to get moving. A meditation platform to stress less. A meal kit to eat more healthily. A language app to finally learn Italian.

Resolutions and subscriptions can be life-changing. The problems are the traps that sometimes follow. A free trial that quietly rolls into a paid plan. A cancel button that is buried three screens deep. A requirement to phone during business hours to stop charges. What begins as a sensible resolution can end in frustration, with fees continuing long after enthusiasm has faded. Three out of four Australians with subscriptions say they have experienced problems cancelling.

That’s why the Albanese Government is cracking down on subscription traps by strengthening Australian Consumer Law to reflect how people actually sign up and cancel services today.

The Hon Jim Chalmers MP
Treasurer

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

Banning supermarket price gouging to protect Australian shoppers

14 December 2025

The Albanese Labor Government has made new regulations to ban supermarket price gouging.

We’re cracking down on supermarket price gouging to help Australians get a better deal at the checkout.

This is all about getting a fairer go for families in their weekly shop.

The ban will prohibit very large retailers from charging prices that are excessive when compared to the cost of the supply plus a reasonable margin.

The new ban on excessive pricing of groceries for consumers in the Food and Grocery Code is now law and will come into effect on 1 July 2026.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

Opinion Piece

Christmas Cracker or Consumer Trap? Retailers Put on Notice

Published in The New Daily

12 December 2025

The Christmas shopping rush has settled into its familiar rhythm. Shopping centres packed at odd hours, parcels stacked on doorsteps, inboxes filling with discount codes and expiring offers. For retailers, it is the most intense trading period of the year. For households, it is a constant calculation between generosity and budget.

Most businesses operate honestly. They advertise accurately and sell goods that meet Australian standards. A few, however, rely on the rush itself: psychological pressure, questionable claims, unsafe products and the assumption that no one will stop to look too closely in the final weeks before Christmas. This year, we’re putting retailers on notice that bad behaviour carries serious consequences.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has signalled that it will be actively looking for misconduct over the festive season. Its focus is on false or misleading sales claims, fake discounts, pressure tactics that rush people into decisions, and unsafe products. These problems are not new, but the scale and speed of modern retail makes them easier to spread and harder to spot.

Since coming to office, the Australian Government has raised the penalties for anti-consumer conduct. The most egregious breaches of consumer law now carry penalties of up to $50 million per offence. These tougher penalties are intended to make non-compliance a genuine commercial risk rather than a tolerable cost.

Andrew Leigh MP
Member for Fenner

David Smith MP
Member for Bean

More than $2.5 million in Commonwealth funding for ACT schools

10 December 2025

Staff and students at three local ACT schools will benefit from more than $2.5 million in Commonwealth funding, as part of the Capital Grants Program.

The Albanese Labor Government is supporting:

• St Matthew's Primary School in Page through $771,954 in funding for the refurbishment of 3 classrooms and support spaces.
• Islamic School of Canberra in Weston through $1 million in funding for the refurbishment of an existing classroom block and amenities.
• Holy Family Parish Primary School in Gowrie through $750,000 in funding for the refurbishment of classrooms and creation of 2 new classrooms, breakout spaces and teacher collaboration area.

Member for Fenner Andrew Leigh said the project at St Matthew's Primary School will provide school staff, teachers and students with better, more modern spaces to work, teach and learn.

“The Australian Government is committed to providing all schools with appropriate funding so that all students, including those at St Matthew's Primary School, get the best possible education,” Dr Leigh said.

“I congratulate St Matthew's Primary School on their successful grant application and look forward to seeing the positive impact these new facilities will have on the school community.”

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC RADIO DARWIN, NT AFTERNOONS WITH JESS ONG
TUESDAY, 9 DECEMBER

SUBJECTS: Banning unfair trading practices, subscription traps and drip pricing

JESS ONG: Now, this might be the situation at your house as it is at mine. You know, every now and then you'll decide, ‘oh, I want to have a new movie in my life or a new TV show’. So, you go to one of those streaming services, you sign up, you get lured into some deal because you get a month or two free and you think, ‘oh, yeah, I'll set a reminder in my calendar so I can cancel before I'm charged that next amount’. And then that month comes around and you go to cancel it, to cancel your subscription. And it is just so hard to do. You're on a loop, going round and round. You might even need to call a call centre to cancel your subscription. So, then eventually you run out of puff and you just give up and these people win and it just happens over and over again.

You're basically stuck in a subscription trap. I wonder whether that's your situation like it is at my house every now and then. These subscription traps, they're not illegal in Australia, but the government does have plans to change that, and Dr Andrew Leigh is the Assistant Minister for Productivity Competition, Charities and Treasury. Hello Minister.

ANDREW LEIGH: G'day Jess. great to be with you.

JESS ONG: Why is this of national interest? Subscription traps, why is that on your radar?

ANDREW LEIGH: Three out of four Australians with subscriptions say they've had a negative experience from trying to cancel one. And as many as 1 in 10 have actually given up trying to cancel a subscription and just kept on reluctantly paying for the service. I've heard stories from people who've cancelled a credit card because it was easier than cancelling the subscriptions that were attached to it. Many subscriptions can be useful. They can make daily life more straightforward. But it ought to be as easy to cancel a subscription as it was to start it in the first place.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

Opinion Piece

Why Australian farmers deserve a fair go on right to repair

Published in Farm Online

9 December 2025

When a tractor breaks down in the middle of harvest, every hour counts. For too long, Australian farmers have faced unnecessary delays and inflated costs because critical repair information was locked away by manufacturers. That’s about to change.

On 28 November, Commonwealth, State and Territory Treasurers, governments agreed to broaden Australia’s right to repair framework to include agricultural machinery. This reform is practical, fair, and overdue. It means farmers will have real choice about who fixes their gear, and independent repairers will have the information they need to compete.

Modern farm equipment is a marvel of technology, but complexity shouldn’t come at the cost of control. Today, diagnostic codes and software are often restricted to authorised dealers, leaving farmers waiting days for repairs that could be done locally. Those delays ripple through the economy. The Productivity Commission estimates that extending right to repair to agriculture could lift annual GDP by $97 million through increased grain outputs alone, simply by reducing downtime during harvest.

Industry knows what this means. Farmers’ Federation President Hamish McIntyre said the reform will deliver “less downtime, lower costs, and more control over their own businesses.” GrainGrowers CEO Shona Gawel called the commitment “landmark,” while Victorian Farmers’ Federation President Brett Hosking described it as “game-changing.” NSW Farmers President Xavier Martin said the reform will allow farmers to support qualified local repairers, reducing costs and wait times. 

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
2CC RADIO CANBERRA, BREAKFAST WITH STEPHEN CENATIEMPO
TUESDAY, 9 DECEMBER 2025

SUBJECTS: Australians encouraged to support charities, Albanese Government warning retailers dodgy tactics and unsafe products will not be tolerated this festive season

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Time to talk federal politics with the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury Andrew Leigh. Andrew, good morning.

ANDREW LEIGH: Good morning, Stephen.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: I want to touch on your charities portfolio for a moment. Charities are obviously doing it tough at the moment but have a greater demand on them than they've ever had. As a politician, particularly in a Treasury portfolio, what do you think when you look at this because I mean this sort of highlights why it's so important to get fiscal policy right?

ANDREW LEIGH: Yeah, we've had a big increase in demands for the services of charities. Many Australians face cost‑of‑living pressures and many charities are out there doing great work.

We've given record support to them as a government and we're also calling on Australians, if you can, to support a trusted charity this season. If you're not sure whether a charity is trusted, the best way to find out is to go to the charity commission register at acnc.gov.au.

And we've got a target Stephen, as you know, of doubling philanthropy by 2030 and as part of that we're seeking to make it easier for charities to get deductible gift recipient status, making things more transparent and boosting trust in the sector.