Election round-up

As the Coalition and Labor try to out-do each other with tax cuts and aspirational tax plans, economists are warning that the long-term targets could be unsustainable because they extend beyond Treasury’s three-year time frame.

Not to mention the risk to interest rates that they pose. More on that in Credit crunch means interest rates will rise.

Meanwhile this morning, Opposition leader Kevin Rudd has been attempting to play down his party’s strong result in the latest Newspoll. Labor’s two-party preferred vote has increased two points to 58% and the Coalition’s has fallen two points to 42%.

Rudd’s vote is up two points to 50%, and Howard’s fell to 37%.

Rudd said to the Nine Network: “”Look at it (polls) a week ago; it was saying other things… You don’t take all this terribly seriously.”