Anthony Albanese drops five-word hint when he plans to step down as Prime Minister

By KYLIE STEVENS, SENIOR BREAKING NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA and ZAK WHEELER, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 15:02, 24 April 2026 | Updated: 15:27, 24 April 2026 Anthony Albanese has opened up when he hopes to stand down as Prime Minister as he approaches four years being in power. He is hopeful of becoming the first Australian Prime Minister is more than six decades to pave his own way out of the office. The last to leave office on his own terms was Sir Robert Menzies on January 20, 1966. All 15 leaders since have been removed from the job by the either the Australian public or their own party colleagues - or in Harold Holt's case, death. Albanese explained that he intends to step back from the role when he 'stops growing as a person' during a wide-ranging interview with Channel Seven podcast The Issue. 'Then I'll know it is time to watch the footy every Saturday rather than do this job,' he said.  'This job is an incredible privilege. I'm enjoying this job, but I don't take it for granted at all. 'I think that is a good thing, the stability that my government has been able to provide. Anthony Albanese hopes to become the first Prime Minister since 1966 to leave the job on his terms The Prime Minister also looked back on his first five months of marriage to Jodie Haydon 'I certainly hope to be in that position (to leave the office voluntarily). 'But that of course is up to the Australian public.'  He also opened up on his marriage to Jodie Haydon, five months after the couple tied the knot at The Lodge in Canberra. Albanese warned that the federal budget on May 12 will be 'tough'. The government revealed this week that 160,000 participants will removes from the National Disability Insurance Scheme, saving taxpayers $15billion by 2030. 'It certainly is a tough budget, and it's been difficult to frame because of the uncertainty, which is there,' he said. 'They're all important, but this is a particularly critical time. This budget will be locked and loaded much later than would normally be the case. 'I feel sorry for the people in treasury and finance because they'll be adjusting them on a daily basis at the moment.' Albanese (pictured with US President Donald Trump) despite his 'difficult' budget, he plans to stay in the office until he 'stops growing as a person' He stressed that United States remains Australia's 'most important security relationship, despite US President Donald Trump accusing Australia of not providing assistance in its war with Iran. 'The United States is a democracy and it's our most important ally, but they made this decision by themselves or with Israel,' he said. 'They didn't consult us at the time; that's their right to do so. 'This isn't a monogamous relationship between Australia and the United States. Australia is also ... out there dating in our region.' The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.