Albanese’s attempts to talk to everyone bear bitter fruit when he goes off script

AdvertisementAnalysis PoliticsFederalPolitical leadership Albanese’s attempts to talk to everyone bear bitter fruit when he goes off script James Massola August 11, 2026 — 2:38pm Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Now the Coalition is ramping up its attacks on the prime minister for playing along with the host’s joke about the Japanese prime minister smuggling in melons under her shirt “like Pamela Anderson”. The comment landed badly and the prime minister quickly apologised. The Coalition, for its part, was slow to criticise the prime minister. But the cavalcade of ministers out defending the prime minister in recent days, including Tanya Plibersek, Murray Watt and Katy Gallagher, underscores the government’s problem.