Andrew Leigh

The Hon Chris Bowen MP
Minister for Climate Change and Energy
Member for McMahon

Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury
Member for Fenner

Alicia Payne MP
Member for Canberra

David Smith MP
Member for Bean

Thousands Of Cheaper Home Batteries Now Powering ACT Homes And Businesses

1 March 2026

More than 4,500 cheaper home batteries have now been installed across the ACT, providing clean and cheap energy for Canberrans.

Across Australia, over a quarter of a million households, small businesses and community organisations have installed a bill busting battery under the Albanese Government’s Cheaper Home Batteries program, with around half of those installing new or upgraded solar systems at the same time.

Batteries help households store the cheaper, cleaner energy they generate during the day, and use it at night. That means less reliance on peak prices, a more reliable grid and putting downward pressure on prices for everyone.

New postcode-level data shows the clean energy upgrade is being led by the outer suburbs and by rural and regional communities, not the inner-city. Around 77 per cent of uptake has occurred in these regional and outer-suburban areas.

The data shows strongest uptake across family suburbs, outer metro growth areas, and towns and regions where households are already leading the way on rooftop solar.

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

From Royals to Roos: Sixty Years of Australia’s Decimal Journey

Royal Australian Mint, Canberra

Friday, 27 February 2026

I begin with a confession.

Sixty years ago, Australia came perilously close to having a currency called “the royal”.

Imagine it. You go to the café and order a flat white. “That’ll be four royals, thanks.” You give your child pocket money – “Here’s a royal, don’t spend it all at once.” A Royal Admirer could be either a loyal monarchist or a coin collector.

This was not a fringe proposal. In 1963, Prime Minister Menzies announced that Australia’s new decimal currency would indeed be called the royal. The public reaction was swift and unforgiving. Letters poured in. Editorials bristled. Australians, it turned out, were perfectly happy to modernise their currency – but they were not prepared to sound like extras in a medieval drama.

Within weeks, the government changed course. The royal was quietly retired before it was even born. In its place came something simpler, sturdier, more practical and more democratic – the dollar.

It was a reminder of an enduring truth in public policy: you can change the numbers, but you cannot ignore the people.

When decimal currency arrived on 14 February 1966, it marked one of the boldest economic transitions in Australia’s modern history. For more than half a century, Australians had used pounds, shillings and pence – a system so intricate that it required the mathematical dexterity of a chess grandmaster and the patience of a saint.

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

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP PRESS CONFERENCE
MURAL HALL, PARLIAMENT HOUSE
THURSDAY, 26 FEBRUARY 2026

SUBJECTS: Albanese Government boosting support for Australian charities; Canberra Day Appeal; Hate Speech Law Reform

ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR CHARITIES, ANDREW LEIGH MP: Thank you very much for coming along. My name is Andrew Leigh, the Assistant Minister for Charities and I'm here with Genevieve Jacobs, the CEO of Hands across Canberra. Today, the Albanese Government is making two exciting announcements.

The first is that we are going to be listing 34 new community charities. This is the biggest number of new community charities to be added since the category was created in 2024. These community charities do a power of good across Australia. They're working in areas like Ballarat and Albany, in areas like Bass Coast and Geelong, and of course, right here in Canberra, with Hands Across Canberra. And I'll ask Genevieve to say a few words about the work that Hands Across Canberra does.

These are charities that are out there trying to solve some of Australia's toughest challenges. Australia is a great nation, but we face challenges like mental health, environmental degradation and community cohesion which we know has been under pressure for decades. Robert Putnam's work in the United States in Bowling Alone, and the work that Nick Terrell and I have done in Australia shows the decline in some measures of social capital. And the answer to that in large part, is a rebuilding of community spirit through organisations like community charities.

We're also announcing that the government will increase the minimum distribution amount for giving funds. Giving funds are set up by donors who receive a tax deduction when they create a fund and are required to make a minimum distribution every year. The government's decision today will increase that minimum distribution rate to 6%. This will see, on our estimates, more than $100 million in additional funds flowing to Australia's great charities. Now giving funds in the government's view, shouldn't be set up in perpetuity. But even under these changes, it will still be possible for a giving fund to exist for a very long time without putting in additional resources. On one estimate, a giving fund that was set up in 1980 and distributed 6% of its total assets every year would by 2024 – 44 years later, still have around three quarters of its additional amount.

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

Boosting Support For Australian Charities

26 February 2026             

The Albanese Labor Government will improve support for Australian charities by increasing the distribution rate for giving funds and expanding the number of organisations that can seek endorsement under the community charities deductible gift recipient category.

Public giving funds were established in tax law in 1963, and private giving funds were introduced into the tax law in 2000. Both kinds of giving funds play a valuable role in Australian philanthropy. They allow donors to receive an upfront tax deduction for their gifts, while allowing those gifts to be invested to increase the funds available for charities in the longer term. In return for this tax deduction, giving funds must make a minimum annual distribution to charities that are deductible gift recipients.

The government will set the minimum annual distribution rate for both private and public giving funds at 6 per cent of net assets. This ensures more benefits flow to charities now to help them to provide their services, while still allowing giving funds to invest and provide benefits into the future.

Treasury analysis shows that a fund receiving market returns that distributed 6 per cent of its net assets each year could last for decades even without further contributions to its assets. Of those giving funds that have made a distribution in recent years, around two-thirds of public giving funds and around half of private giving funds distributed more than 6 per cent of net assets. 

The government is also making changes that will allow giving funds to support large projects with charities without making excessive draw downs on their capital, by allowing them to smooth distributions over a three‑year period. This provides greater flexibility to giving funds in the type of charitable activity they support and helps ensure distributions can be maintained over time.

The Hon Dr Anne Aly MP
Minister for Small Business
Minister for International Development 
Minister for Multicultural Affairs

The Hon Dr Daniel Mulino MP
Assistant Treasurer Minister for Financial Services

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

Albanese Labor Government moves to extend Unfair Contract Terms ban to protect all franchisees

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, 24 FEBRUARY 2026

SUBJECTS: ISIS foreign fighters’ wives; NBN upgrades begin for up to 97,000 ACT homes and businesses; Albanese Government helping Australians get a fairer deal at the checkout

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

ANDREW LEIGH: Good morning, Stephen. Great to be with you.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: And you too. I suppose we have to talk about these so-called ISIS brides. The government has made a rod for its own back here because there's clearly a lack of transparency as to what is actually happening. The government is trying to assure us that there's been no assistance given to these people whatsoever. But the New South Wales Premier, Chris Minns says he's been talking to the federal government about repatriating them for months.

ANDREW LEIGH: Well Stephen, we know that 40 fighters and brides came back under the former government, and we've been very clear that we've provided no assistance to these people to return. They made a horrendous…

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Can I ask you, what is the significance of those people coming back under the previous government? Because the reality is the Prime Minister's actually gotten that wrong too. But the government changed the laws because of that?

ANDREW LEIGH: I'm just being clear that previously not only ISIS brides, but ISIS fighters have returned to Australia. We have been very clear that we have not provided assistance to this cohort. This is a cohort who made a decision to go over and fight with ISIS, one of the most horrendous death cults ever, which left behind mass graves, murdered children and enslaved women. So, let's be in no doubt about the horrendous decision that some of these people made.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Absolutely. But does that mean Chris Minns is not telling us the truth then?

ANDREW LEIGH: So, what we've been very clear about is that Australian citizens are entitled to a passport – you, me and anybody else who has citizenship. And so where people are…

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: The Passport Act does allow for you to block the access to passports?

ANDREW LEIGH: Only if a particular ASIO security condition is met, and the advice of our security agencies is that that has not been met. So without meeting that threshold, it is the case that we need to issue passports to Australian citizens. What we can do is put in place a temporary exclusion order. The Minister for Home Affairs has put in place one of those orders. That is an important step in the case of that individual. You certainly feel for the kids of course, but we don't, under our immigration law, separate kids and parents. Kids have the same immigration status, and I think it's appropriate that the kids stay with their parents.

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

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TV INTERVIEW
ABC AFTERNOON BRIEFING, WITH PATRICIA KARVELAS
MONDAY, 23 FEBRUARY 2026

SUBJECTS: ISIS foreign fighters’ wives; tariffs; tax reform; Trump Tower on the Gold Coast; ‘The Shortest History of Innovation’

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Now for the government's view. Andrew Leigh is the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury and joins me now. Andrew Leigh, welcome.

ANDREW LEIGH: Thanks Patricia, great to be with you. 

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Now, you know, just to cover off on that perspective – Save the Children are very concerned about the Coalition's proposal. The Attorney General, Michelle Rowland has not closed the door on the Coalition's proposal. Do you think it's a bad idea?

ANDREW LEIGH: We've certainly got concerns about its constitutionality. But I would say that in the case of this cohort, they made an appalling mistake in choosing to travel to Syria. To support ISIS was to support one of the most appallingly barbaric groups in human history, which left behind a litter of enslaved women, murdered children and mass graves. So the government doesn't want these people back in Australia, but the law requires that if you're an Australian citizen, you can be granted a passport.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Okay. So what do you make then of what Mat Tinkler has said there? He says he is concerned about the Government's rhetoric as well as the Opposition's, that you're using this harder language and that actually we have an obligation to these children who are Australian children, that it actually will make us safer to have them repatriated here. Can you see that argument Assistant Minister?

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

Opinion Piece

Why We Should Get To Choose Who Fixes Our Cars

Published in The New Daily

19 February 2026

Until mid-2022, many Australian drivers discovered that owning a car did not always mean controlling who could repair it. As vehicles became more digital, critical diagnostic information wasn’t always available to the independent mechanics people trusted. That left drivers with fewer choices, less convenience and often a higher bill.

That is precisely the problem Australia’s right-to-repair scheme was designed to fix.

The Australian Government’s review released this month confirms that the nation’s first motor vehicle right-to-repair framework is delivering what it promised: more choice for motorists, quicker repairs, stronger small businesses, and a more competitive repair market.

Since the Albanese Government took office, vehicle manufacturers have been required to share service and repair information with independent workshops at a fair market price. It sounds technical, but the effect is simple. When more qualified mechanics can fix your car, there are more repairers competing for your business, so drivers benefit.

The results are striking. The review links the scheme to a $2.4 billion annual lift in automotive industry turnover. Independent workshops report higher capability and stronger productivity. Motorists face fewer barriers when servicing modern vehicles and have more options about where to go.

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

Opinion Piece

Fibre is the infrastructure of the modern economy – and Canberra is getting more of it

Published in The Canberra Times

19 February 2026

In the early days of electricity, households judged its value by how brightly it lit their homes. Few imagined it would reshape manufacturing, healthcare, communications and entertainment. Broadband is following the same path. What began as a faster way to browse the web has become core economic infrastructure. The fibre upgrade now underway across Canberra will help ensure our city remains productive, connected, innovative and resilient in the decades ahead.

Construction has begun on a major upgrade that will enable around 97,000 Canberra homes and businesses currently connected by fibre-to-the-node to transition to full fibre connections. Across 85 suburbs, workers will haul more than 2,500 kilometres of fibre and utilise over 1,200 poles. By the end of the decade, nearly all premises in the ACT currently served by fibre-to-the-node will be eligible for full fibre.

To understand why this matters, it helps to know the difference between fibre-to-the-node and fibre-to-the-premises. Fibre-to-the-node runs optical fibre to a street cabinet, then relies on ageing copper lines to reach individual homes. Copper was designed for voice calls and basic data services. Its performance weakens over distance and degrades over time. Fibre-to-the-premises replaces that copper link with optical fibre all the way to the building. The result is faster speeds, greater reliability, higher capacity and stronger long-term performance.

Full fibre connections can deliver gigabit speeds and beyond. They also allow upload speeds to keep pace with download speeds. This supports households uploading large files, students participating in interactive classes, and businesses running cloud-based operations. Fibre also has lower latency, meaning faster response times, smoother video calls, clearer telehealth consultations and more responsive digital services.

Senator The Hon Katy Gallagher 
Minister for Finance
Minister for Women
Minister for the Public Service
Minister for Government Services
Senator for the ACT

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

David Smith MP
Member for Bean

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP
WEDNESDAY, 18 FEBRUARY 2026

SUBJECTS: NBN upgrades begin for up to 97,000 ACT homes and businesses; CGT; private health insurance premiums; GST carve up; ACCC case against Coles; ACNC

DAVID SMITH MP, MEMBER FOR BEAN: Good morning, I am David Smith, the Federal Member for Bean, and we're not quite in Bean, we're a couple of streets away, but we are very, very exciting news about roll out of the NBN today. I'm with the Minister for Finance and Senator for the ACT, Katy Gallagher, Andrew Barr, Chief Minister, and Ellie Sweeney from the NBN. And I'll pass over to Katy for an update on the upgrades to the NBN today.

SENATOR THE HON KATY GALLAGHER, MINISTER FOR FINANCE: Thanks very much, Dave. It's great to be here with Ellie Sweeney, the Chief Minister, and my federal colleagues.

This is a really important announcement for the ACT. This is really finishing the job of the NBN here in the ACT. Canberrans were promised a lot when the NBN was announced, and then when the Liberal government came in and they revised the NBN, they downgraded Canberra. And what that meant is that Canberra households, Canberra businesses, didn't get access to the high-speed broadband that we were promised, and this is about finishing that job, making sure that households, businesses can have the choice to have that access to high-speed broadband delivered by the NBN when we know demand through households and businesses for high-speed internet is increasing all the time.

We know that each household has about 25 devices. We know that's going to increase to 44 over time. We know businesses rely very much on access to high-speed internet, and this is about finishing the job. We're so pleased, this was a commitment we gave to the Canberra community last year as we headed into the federal campaign, this is about finishing that job.

So you will see enormous work happening across Canberra over the next three or so years. You're seeing it starting here in Narrabundah, but there's a number of suburbs this will happen right across Canberra, 85 suburbs, a huge amount of fibre rolled out.

We're incredibly pleased the NBN has put together this project here in the ACT and has prioritised Canberra, but also to the Chief Minister and his team, because it is disruptive, it is construction work, it is a big investment in the ACT, but we need to work in partnership across the federal government, NBN and the ACT Government to deliver the high-speed broadband that Canberrans deserve, and that's what this is about.

We know that the Liberals downgraded Canberra. When you have a Labor Government working with the ACT Labor Government here, we get the job done.