Dave Hughes issues an ultimatum to Albo on behalf of Australia - as he rips into the PM with brutal spray

By KYLIE STEVENS, SENIOR BREAKING NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 13:48, 23 May 2026 | Updated: 13:55, 23 May 2026 Aussie comedian Dave Hughes has called on Anthony Albanese to call an election two years early unless the federal government scraps its major tax reforms. The Prime Minister and Treasurer Jim Chalmers have come under heavy fire in recent weeks over claims they broke election promises by restricting negative gearing to new investment properties and introducing a minimum 30 per cent capital gains tax (CGT). The longstanding 50 per cent CGT discount is being scrapped, with some high-income business owners warning it could leave them paying tax at rates as high as 47 per cent when selling a business. Business owners launched a viral AI meme campaign, sharing images depicting Albanese as an unwanted 'co-founder' or 'silent partner', amid claims the changes would give the government a larger share of their success. As the Prime Minister used Saturday's Victorian Labor state conference to strongly defend the tax reforms, Hughes took to social media to slam the government in a furious spray while detailing a conversation he had just had with a business owner in Brisbane about the Federal Budget. 'The capital gains tax has killed him. He's got a 100 staff and doesn't know what he's going to do as he has no motivation anymore,' Hughes began. 'He also said negative gearing wasn't his issue - and it's not mine either. I've never needed to negative gear a property as I've never worked it out.' Hughes said that he would never have voted for the Albanese government had he known the CGT discounts would be axed within a year. Dave Hughes has called on Anthony Albanese to call an election two years early unless he backflips on the major tax reforms in the recent Federal Budget The Prime Minister spent Saturday spruiking the capital gains tax and negative gearing reforms at Victorian Labor Party's state conference 'I voted for Albo and Chalmers. They did not have a mandate for changing CGT,' he said. 'It's now the highest in the world. No one is going to want to invest in Australia. 'What the f*** are you doing?'  'This affects every working Australian, and everyone who actually pays tax. 'And you've just doubled the take on it to waste, because you're f***king incompetent.' Hughes issued a blunt ultimatum for the Albanese government - scrap the tax changes or call an election first thing Monday. 'The bumbling, fumbling idiotic responses this week by both Albo and Chalmers and every other minister in that f***king stupid government just solidified the fact we need another election,' he said. 'You didn't have a mandate for it. You lied blatantly, so it's not valid.' 'So let's go to the polls. Put it to the people.' Hughes says the changes impact all everyday Australians 'You didn't have a mandate for it. You lied blatantly, so it's not valid,' Dave Hughes said Hughes also referenced a recent Sky News Pulse poll, where only one per cent of voters surveyed said they will be better off after the Federal Budget. 'They (the government) blatantly lied before the election because they knew it would cost votes,' Hughes captioned his video. 'They are too stupid to know what the effects would be.' Hughes' video was inundated with support from thousands of Aussies. 'Time to change this government that has wrecked Australia more than any so far in many many decades,' tennis player Matt Ebden commented. 'A comedian giving political advice is probably the funniest joke of the year so far,' one man wrote. On Saturday, Albanese used the Victorian Labor state conference to defend the negative gearing changes, which were 'the right thing to do, not the easy thing' and would help rebalance Australia's housing market. 'Because of the tax breaks that are there, it's not an equal process,' Mr Albanese said. The comedian said that he would have never voted for Albanese (pictured on election night) if he knew he would break an election promise not to scrap the CGT discount 'Because if it's a matter of an extra $20,000 to bid or $30,000 to bid, they know that they can do that in the comfort that that will be an increase in their tax deduction, that all of you and every Australian taxpayer is their partner here. 'But if you're trying to buy your own home, you don't have that, and that is why, put it simply, we are reforming negative gearing and capital gains.' He hit back at claims that the government was attacking aspiration. 'We will not allow Australia to become a country where aspiration is only for some,' Albanese said. 'Our reforms are about backing aspiration for all, bringing the great Australian dream of home ownership back in reach for a new generation. 'Our changes are pro-aspiration, and pro-supply, so we can help people get into a home of their own.' No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. 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. 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