Parliament will sit for the next four days before the by-election in the Melbourne seat of Dunkley, following the death of Labor MP Peta Murphy, is held on Saturday — the first big electoral test of the year.

Two new polls show despite the changes to the tax cuts — which will go through parliament this week — the government suffered a dip in its primary vote.

The Newspoll for The Australian shows the government having failed to improve its position overall since December.

Labor’s primary vote fell behind the coalition 36 to 33 per cent, although the government maintained a four-point lead on the two-party preferred vote system, 52 to 48 per cent, two points higher than February’s polling.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said she knew the by-election would be a tight call but remained confident that Labor candidate Jodie Belyea would sway voters.

“By-elections are tough and that is why our candidate is out there every single day talking to voters about what matters to them – and that is cost-of-living,” she said.

But Nationals frontbencher Barnaby Joyce declared that high cost of living was “absolutely murdering people”, arguing that recent scandals involving border protection would dampen Labor’s chances.

“[Voters] can’t afford what is happening at the checkout and they certainly can’t afford their power prices,” he said.

“Let’s see what the Labor Party can do. They don’t deserve to win – put it that way, let’s see what happens.”

The Newspoll results also reported Mr Albanese gaining one point as the “better Prime Minister,” from 46 to 47 per cent, with Mr Dutton remaining steady on 35 per cent. A further 18 per cent were uncommitted.

Polling conducted by Resolve Political Monitor for the Nine newspapers found the primary vote for Labor dropped by one point from 35 to 34 per cent since December, while the Coalition gained ground from 34 per cent to 37 per cent.

While Mr Albanese was still seven points ahead of Mr Dutton (39 to 32 per cent) as the preferred prime minister, the margin was also at its lowest since Labor was returned to power.

Joyce clocks off

Barnaby Joyce has taken time off just weeks after he was filmed lying on a public footpath, intoxicated and slurring profanities into his phone.

The former deputy prime minister came under intense scrutiny earlier this month after a viral video emerged showing him lying on a Canberra street late at night which he later blamed on mixing alcohol with prescription medication.

Ahead of a busy parliamentary sitting day on Monday, Nationals leader David Littleproud confirmed that Mr Joyce had taken the week off after he urged the MP to take leave to deal with “personal matters.”

“I’ll take Barnaby on his word. He won’t be here this week. He’s notified me that he won’t be coming to parliament. He’s having the week off, which we gave him the opportunity to undertake with his family,” Mr Littleproud said.

“I respect that. And I hope, hope he went to church yesterday and all he had was altar wine.”

‘Buggers’: Lambie’s heads case for defence shake up

Independent senator Jacqui Lambie has called for the sacking of senior defence officials in a brutal dressing-down of defence force culture.

On Sunday, Defence Minister Richard Marles admitted that there were “cultural issues” plaguing his department following reports that he was at odds with senior figures in his own department.

Mr Males told Sky News that things had gotten so bad that he hauled Defence Secretary Greg Moriarty and Defence Chief Angus Campbell in for a closed-door meeting to demand a better culture of excellence late last year.

In a blow-up on Monday, Senator Lambie said the issue was a 15-year-long problem and demanded that Mr Marles fire his defence secretary effective immediately.

“If you can’t see that the top echelon of defence needs to go and needs to be removed, effective immediately, and also the secretary [Mr Moriarty] . that’s a good start,” she told Nine.

“Get rid of these buggers because there is a problem.”

The week in parliament

Labor will spend the week fighting cost-of-living fires on multiple fronts, as the government gears up to pass its new-look tax cuts against a backdrop of another housing battle.

While the changes to the stage 3 tax cuts will be the focus of the Senate this week, debate on the government’s proposed Help to Buy scheme will resume in the lower house.

If passed, the shared equity scheme would allow more than 40,000 Australians to co-own their first home with the government, requiring just two per cent of a deposit.

The government says it’s a crucial part of Labor’s broader housing agenda, but are staring down the Coalition and the Greens.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, debate will continue on the changes to the tax cuts.

The Coalition is set to vote in favour of the policy, but will likely use the vote to move amendments undermining the government as they did when the Bill went through the lower house.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers called on the opposition and the senate crossbenchers to “do the right thing by their communities and the country”.

“Don’t delay, don’t stuff around, vote for the cost-of-living relief that our communities need and deserve,” he said.

The Coalition are likely to use question time this week to push Labor to do more to tackle supermarket prices, after conversation turned towards forced divestiture last week.

Nationals leader David Littleproud called on the government to consider legislating powers to force Coles and Woolworths to sell off assets in a bid to improve competition and consequently lower prices.

Mr Albanese ruled it out last week, saying his government wasn’t “the Soviet Union”, instead pointing to the work of multiple inquiries currently underway.

Warnings over ‘pork season’

An independent MP has launched a bid to stamp out pork-barrelling, warning it has been rampant ahead of the Dunkley by-election.

There are currently no laws to criminalise pork-barrelling in Australia, which happens when politicians use and divert taxpayer funds to target voters in an effort to drum up votes.

Ahead of the introduction of her private members bill to criminalize pork-barrelling on Monday, Helen Haines warned it was absolutely “critical” that pork-barrelling was made illegal before the upcoming election.

“Pork barrelling is happening right now during the Dunkley by-election, and before long the government and the opposition will be campaigning for the next federal election,” she told ABC’s Radio National.

 “We know there has been an egregious breach of trust when it comes to the expenditure of public money.

 “It’s absolutely critical that we stamp this out once and for all – we’re entering election season pretty soon and that’s prime pork season.”

‘Rubbish’ nuclear blow-up

A new poll showing that younger Australians would back a transition to nuclear power has been slammed as a “fantasy and a distraction” as the Coalition continues its war against the country’s renewables transition.

The Labor government has set an ambitious goal to convert 82 per cent of the country’s energy sources to renewables by 2030.

However, a recent Newspoll conducted for The Australian shows about 55 per cent of voters would back a proposal to replace retired coal-fired power plants with small modular nuclear reactors.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said nuclear was the most expensive solution at a $389 billion dollar estimated cost to taxpayers.

“Until you tell them that there will be a nuclear react or next door then I don’t think that anybody would support nuclear power,” she told Sunrise.

“It is a fantasy and distraction to what we need to do,”

According to the new poll, about 65 per cent of people aged 18 to 34-year-olds backed nuclear power, despite research indicating that younger generations were the most concerned about climate change.

Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce, who has long opposed Labor’s renewables plan, argued that regional Australia couldn’t cope with the renewable energy transition.

“You’re selling the wind farms … the price of power will goes through the roof and liability goes through the roof and liability goes through the floor and the money goes overseas.

‘Fed up’ tradies to strike

Electricians and tradesmen working in Canberra’s Parliament House have walked off their jobs for 24-hours to demand higher wages.

Members from the Electrical Trades Union some full-time electrical staff building have been paid about $30,000 below the industry average.

TU NSW & ACT Secretary Allen Hicks said workers were “fed up” and called on the Department of Parliamentary Services to offer staff a better pay deal.

“It’s a kick in the guts to have contractor staff who’re paid competitive industry rates working alongside trade-qualified permanent employees who’re earning the equivalent of a contractor apprentice,” Mr Hicks said.

“We have federal politicians acknowledging the need to fill the chronic shortage of electrical workers, yet one of their departments is offering their trades staff a dud deal that does nothing to retain and attract the workforce.