ACM Pub Test: The Standard's panellists weigh in on the first week of the 2022 federal election

The Standard caught up with its Pub Test panellists who expressed tones of disappointment and concern about the 2022 federal election start.

First-time voter Michael Killen, 21, said he was underwhelmed by Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese's campaigns so far.

"Neither of them have performed to any sort of standard that I would actually expect from a leader," he said.

"I don't feel any attachment towards them. I just feel like I am of secondary concern to them."

Other than Labor's $31 million pledge to boost telehealth mental health services, Mr Killen said the issues raised by party leaders were irrelevant to voters his age.

"It's disenfranchising," he said.

"My specific demographic isn't really targeted. As first-time voters, we need to hear promises that are going to be made that are relevant to us."

Mr Killen said he would like to see parties focus on housing affordability, sustainable energy goals policy, and asylum seeker justice.

"It's depressing to see the housing situation in Australia, and not really know what to do as someone who doesn't have a stable income yet and is still studying," he said.

"Relating to environmental justice, I still don't feel as though any tangible commitments have been made.

"Australia has some of the worst asylum seeker treatment in the world. That's something that absolutely needs to be addressed."

Mr Killen noticed the attention given to the Labor leader's stumble on cash and unemployment rates but said it did not change his indifference towards Mr Albanese.

"Forgetting and stumbling, I didn't think that would be a front page story. I didn't really care about it," he said.

"I don't really know the guy. That's kind of the main thought I have towards Albanese - I don't know him yet. He's just another politician to me."

Yet, Mr Killen said his vote was leaning towards Labor.

"I can't, in my good conscience, vote for the current government, mostly because of how they handled the pandemic and how they've treated young people over the past few years," he said.

Gunditjmara elder Charmaine Clarke, 55, said she was disappointed with the focus on the politicians rather than policy in the past week.

"There's been a lot of focus on the gaffe by Albanese," she said.

"The fact that they are trying these silly gotchas on statistics or figures is really disingenuous to what the reality is that voters are experiencing.

"I'm not hearing much about policy at all and that's quite disappointing, because that's what Australian voters are really wanting to hear."

Rather than character attacks, Ms Clarke said she wanted to see the parties outline their plans for the economy and tackling climate change.

"I took out a loan for the first time in 20 years, I'm interested in how the interest rates are going to affect me," she said.

"My wages haven't risen. My cost of living is going up. We've got some economic uncertainty, so we need a lot more clarification around that.

"Not many people are talking about the environment, which is a big political campaign issue right now for voters. They need to start treating the voter more intelligently, and give us climate policy to actually believe in them about."

Ms Clarke said Mr Morrison's campaigning during the last week felt slightly better than Mr Albanese's.

"He seems to be more adept at it," she said.

"I'm finding Albanese has been a little bit caught on the back foot."

But Ms Clarke said her vote would be with Labor this week if an election was held, and despite Mr Albanese's misstep, she thought the party would still win in May.

"I think Labor will be talking up their policies," she said.

"They were afraid because they went really strong on their policies last election, and the Libs just tore it apart, but the last three years have changed a lot."

Retiree Rod Carter, 84, said neither leader had "dealt a knockout blow" in the first week.

"For the first week, I wouldn't give points to either of them," he said.

"Morrison has stuffed up enough and Albanese has stuffed up enough."

For Mr Carter, Labor's campaign on a parliamentary integrity commission was the standout moment of the past week.

"It was good that Labor's said they'll put up a decent anti-corruption commission," he said.

"It's certainly needed and one would hope that it would keep everybody much more honest."

However, he said he was disappointed with the party's lack of commitment to raising the JobSeeker rate.

"Surprisingly, there are quite a large number of retirees who are on JobSeeker," he said.

"But I also feel for the young ones and people who are single-parents. It's shocking trying to exist with the cost of living the way it is at the moment."

Mr Carter said he would vote for Labor at this stage and thought the party might face trouble from independents and minor parties on election day.

"I think the independents will take more seats," he said.

"If preferences are directed the wrong way, that could cause some problems for Labor."

IN OTHER NEWS

Freelance videographer Colleen Hughson, 49, said she was undecided on which leader performed best on their campaigns in the past week.

Ms Hughson said the issues important to her including climate action, gender equality and political corruption had been addressed to varying degrees.

"Scott Morrison's ongoing support of the coal industry gives me little hope for reducing Australia's greenhouse gas emissions," she said.

"There have been so many examples of politicians rorting the system, stealing tax-payers money and abusing their powers."

"I would like to see these corrupt politicians made accountable."

Small business owner David de Carteret, 38, said he also thought neither party leader campaigned well during the first week.

For Mr de Cateret, a standout moment of the campaign came from Greens leader Adam Bandt's speech at the National Press Gallery.

"Adam Bandt telling a journalist to 'google it mate' after being asked a question about a particular statistic before going on to discuss the problem with that type of gotcha moment journalism was great," he said.

Mr de Carteret said he looked forward to Labor's health pledge but was disheartened by its JobSeeker review dismissal.

"It is always good to see more funding for health and mental health," he said.

"Labor's non-commitment to a raise in the JobSeeker rate is disappointing, it would be great to see a government committed to properly looking after people in need."

He said he was unsure about which party would win the election at this stage and remained undecided about his vote.

"Probably the Greens or Labor, although I could be swayed to vote for an independent," he said.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:

Now just one tap with our new app: Digital subscribers now have the convenience of faster news, right at your fingertips with The Standard:

Have you signed up to The Standard's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in the south-west.