Anthony Albanese says he's invited Donald Trump to visit Australia — as it happened

Thanks for joining us for the budget wash up. My spies are telling me it could be a late night in the Senate. My colleagues will be listening in to all the drama and we'll bring you all the updates bright and early tomorrow morning.

But until then, here's what we learned today:

• The Coalition labelled Labor's fresh round of tax cuts an election bribe. It later voted against the cuts in the House of Reps. 
• Meanwhile the treasurer defended the cuts as 'modest'.
• The PM accused the opposition of being 'delulu' without a 'solulu'. 
• Jim Chalmers also left the door open to a future government including dental in Medicare. 
• Meanwhile, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young wielded a dead salmon in the chamber during a protest on salmon farming in Tasmania. 
• Anthony Albanese told the ABC he plans to visit the US early in the next term of parliament, should he be re-elected. 

The NSW Rural Doctors Association (RDA) remains concerned about access to GPs in the bush, despite the budget promising to improve healthcare in regional Australia.

The government has promised $7.9 billion over four years to expand bulk billing in the country, which aims to deliver 18 million bulk billed GP visits each year.

 RDA President Rachel Christmas welcomed additional funding but says it's not a silver bullet for addressing doctor shortages in regional areas.

"Certainly, the plan for bulk billing is the government’s response to access cheaper healthcare for people and they're really making an effort to make it more affordable for people and I do applaud that" she said.

 "Just because your doctor is cheaper to get into, doesn't mean there's more of them."  

Anthony Albanese was also asked about the lack of funding in the budget for a Makarrata commission.

A Makarrata commission, named after a Yolngu word for coming together after a struggle, is the "culmination" of the Uluru Statement from the Heart. Its intended purpose is to oversee both truth-telling and treaty-making between governments and First Nations.

It was a key election promise for Labor, alongside the failed Voice referendum. In its first budget the Albanese government allocated $5.8 million to the establishment of the commission.

The PM was asked if it was still budgeted for. He says the government's focus is now on "prioritising economic advancement and economic empowerment".

It's not the first time the PM has made such comments. As Tom Crowley previously reported, Albanese first made similar remarks to the ABC at last year's Garma Festival. 

Anthony Albanese says the government is on "the cusp of a deal" with the senate to continue the boosted instant asset write-off tax break for small businesses and sole traders.

The write-off allows small businesses to claim an immediate $20,000 tax deduction to pay for work expenses, including new work vehicles.

But with a promised extension held up in the senate, it is due to fall back to $1,000 from July - which could also pose a problem for people who have already spent money expecting to claim it on their taxes.

The prime minister said his government wanted to continue it but had been blocked since the commitment was made in a previous budget.

He said negotiations to pass an extension tonight were "looking very positive".

Anthony Albanese says he's extended an invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit Australia.

The prime minister told ABC's Afternoon Briefing he "absolutely" plans to make America one of his first international trips if he is re-elected.

"I have discussed with the president going to the US and I expect that certainly will be very early on in the term," he says.

Asked when Trump would make his way down under, the PM says that's a matter for him.

"He did not come in his first term as president but American presidents will always be welcome here as other international visitors," he says.

Australia is also "likely" to host a meeting of the Quad - a grouping of leaders from the US, Japan and India - next year.

On whether the PM is any closer to securing another phone call with Trump, it seems like it's a no.

The pair started off well. Albanese called Trump after his inauguration and again recently where the US president said he'd give consideration to an exemption on steel and aluminium tariffs.

But in the end, Trump snubbed that request. The PM also hasn't been able to secure another phone call with the leader to plead Australia's case.

Here's what the PM said about the whole thing:

"The important factor is what I am looking for is an outcome of what happens between leaders is when things are sorted out by officials than leaders have discussions."

A new specialist Reserve Bank rate-setting board will meet for the first time next Tuesday. It will decide whether the central bank will deliver back-to-back rate cuts.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese won't be drawn on whether he expects the board to cut the cash rate.

"The RBA is an independent body," he says.

"I do not think the RBA needs my advice. They will make their decision independently."

The budget confirmed Australia is facing a decade of deficits as debt climbs towards $1 trillion dollars. So in considering that, does the PM think the level of government spending is sustainable?

"When we came to office you will recall they were deficits forecast until 2061," he says.

"What we did was hard work to turn a $78 billion deficit into a $22 billion surplus, follow that up with another $15 billion surplus, and the deficit that we announced last night is almost half of what was anticipated, less than three years ago."

Does Labor have a plan to turn it around even further?

"We wake every day to make a difference," the PM says.

Anthony Albanese has just joined Patricia Karvelas in the studio for Afternoon Briefing. 

First up? Tax cuts. The cuts are not due to come into effect for another 15 months. So what's the go with the mad rush in passing the legislation today?

The PM says it's about "providing certainty".

"We clearly have had a majority in the House of Representatives and we will put it through the Senate so that people can be certain," he says.

Independent MP Zoe Daniel is up next. She's not a big fan of the government ramming its tax cuts through just a day after they were announced in the budget.

"It's bad practice … obviously from a crossbench point of view, and they don't think they usually speak [with] my colleagues, but on this kind of thing we all just think, don't do it that way," she tells ABC's Afternoon Briefing. 

"Rigour needs to be applied to legislation. It's very blatant ahead of an election to force this through and then wedge the opposition, it's very self-evident why it's happening.

"But I don't think it's a really appropriate approach."

Is a bidding war on a tax cuts good for the country? Daniel doesn't think so.

"I think a bigger conversation about tax is good for the country and, actually, this budget is a good jumping off point for that," she says.

She says in the coming years the tweak of the lower tax bracket will be reabsorbed by inflation anyway. She wants to see tax brackets indexed with inflation to address bracket creep.

"We're far too reliant on income tax in Australia. We can't continue to be. We need to review all taxes in order to broaden the tax base and change the tax mix," Daniel says.

Last time Ed Husic stopped by Afternoon Briefing, he described the US President Donald Trump's decision not to exempt Australia from his steel and aluminium tariffs as a "dog act".

He's asked what he'd call it if Trump decides to slap more tariffs on Australia on April 2.

"I would like to think the way I felt at that point in time, I mean I still feel the same … I just can't believe on the basis of fact or friendship that the Trump Administration would make the call they did to us," he says.

But he wouldn't be drawn on how he, or the government would respond, if Trump used our goods and services tax as an excuse to impose more tariffs.

He referenced the "elbows up" line used by Canada PM Mark Carney and comedian Mike Myers. The mantra has been adopted by Canada as it faces a trade war with the US, and threats from Trump to annex the nation as America's 51st state.

"I think it will require us to work closer in the Commonwealth, particularly within our cousins, our Canadian cousins, who have said elbows up, and there is something in that for us and will require us to work closely within our own neighbourhood within Asia," he says.

"It will force us to work closer with Europe and the UK as well, and I think there is a path there."

Industry Minister Ed Husic is the first guest today. He's asked if there is a risk that offering people a tax cut ahead of an election will be viewed as a bribe.

He doesn't see it that way.

"In terms of all those cost-of-living measures we have brought in through this term of parliament, they're all designed to be able to contribute and make life easier for people. It is not just about the tax cuts, as important as they are," Husic says.

If the Coalition offers bigger tax cuts than Labor, what will the party do next?

"Let's just wait and see. There is often a lot of hype, they are good at producing hype, the detail is … sadly wanting."

The prime minister will be joining Patricia Karvelas for a post-budget grilling.

I'll have all the action for you on the live blog. But you can also tune in via the ABC News Channel and iView. 

The budget included funding to set up a national licensing scheme so electrical tradies can work across states and territories without needing to apply for a separate license or pay more fees.

It means electricians working on projects in Western Australia, say, who then move onto Queensland, will be able to work under the same license. It will also be helpful for border tradies, like those working in Albury and Wodonga, or the Tweed and Gold Coast.

Let’s be clear though – the federal government will still need to design the scheme in consultation with the states and modelled by the Productivity Commission – so it's unclear when it will become reality.

The change comes out of the National Competition Policy, and the budget papers say:

"This will allow electricians to move to where they’re needed most, bringing significant benefits for workers, business and consumers through improved labour mobility, reduced red tape and by easing cost-of-living pressures."

The $10,000 apprenticeship incentive program, already available in clean energy sectors, will come into effect for new apprentices in "critical construction" industries from July 1.

The bonus will be paid to apprentices in instalments throughout their four-year apprenticeship, rather than an upfront payment which has happened in the past.

The list of eligible construction-sector trades is still being finalised in consultation with Jobs and Skills Australia and skills councils.

There is also $11 million set aside to increase apprentice wage support for workers with disabilities.

Builders and plumbers have welcomed the assistance but say it's not enough to encourage more people into priority trades. They also say it doesn't really help if a business can't afford to put on an apprentice in the first place.

Sarah Hanson-Young's Senate protest wasn't the only salmon stunt that took place today. Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson heckled the PM during his morning media interviews about salmon farming in Tasmania's west.

"You're a pack of mongrels!" Wish-Wilson shouted across a courtyard.

Watch the interaction below:

It may have caught your attention that this year's federal budget does not, as in previous years, specify a clear permanent migration intake figure, which determines how many people can gain permanent residency in Australia annually.

According to James Hammond, principal lawyer at Hammond Migration, the government announced "a little while ago" that it would move away from setting a yearly permanent migration program, opting instead for a multi-year approach.

He suggests this decision may be linked to the upcoming federal election.

"With only about a month and a half before the election, any long-term immigration plan might not necessarily receive support from the next government," he told the ABC.

"So the government perhaps decided to bypass migration planning for this budget."

Despite the uncertainty, he noted several points that temporary visa holders should be aware of.

"Based on the current financial year's figure, the biggest category within the skilled visa program is employer-sponsored permanent applicants," Mr Hammond says.

"I would be surprised if those numbers decreased from where they are currently in this program."

Mr Hammond also emphasised that the general skilled migration program might not be Australia's main driver of migration intake. However, he hopes the skilled migration figure will remain at its present level in the new financial year.

"There's a lot of demand both from international students and working holiday makers and other temporary visa holders in Australia, many of whom arrived in an influx of temporary visa holders post COVID-19," he said.

"A lot of those people will be looking for pathways to permanent residency in general."

Senator Sarah Hanson-Young's dead salmon stunt was in response to legislation being pushed through parliament to safeguard Tasmania's salmon farming industry.

The proposed laws wind back some environmental protections including the rights of environmental groups to challenge previous decisions of government.

The laws would prevent an environment minister from reviewing certain environmental decisions that are more than five years old.

You can read more here:

And after a dixer to Aged Care Minister Anika Wells, the PM pulls up stumps on question time for the day.

Just one more left for the week (and probably the term of this parliament).