Anthony Albanese and Jodie Haydon's holiday surprise: Prime Minister kicks off five days of summer with a celebrity twist – in an appearance no one would expect from a trendy leader

Music lover Anthony Albanese's holiday got off to a rocking start as he posed with singing icon Marcia Hines at a Foo Fighters concert.

Mr Albanese and partner Jodie Haydon posed for a selfie with Hines at the Foo Fighters concert in Sydney on Saturday evening, as the Prime Minister prepared for a five-day break – from Sunday to Friday.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles fills the top position.

During Parliament's final week of session, Albanese outlined his government's achievements in a year that risks being redefined by the failure of the Voice referendum, the cost of living crisis, the pressure on interest rate increases and the debacle with released prisoners.

“Since we have been in power, we have seen the creation of at least 624,000 new jobs,” Albanese said.

“More jobs have been created than any new government in Australia's history, and we're only half way there.

“We have the first budget surplus in 15 years, turning a $78 billion deficit under (the coalition) into a $22 billion surplus.”

Mr Albanese also cited the Housing Australia Future Fund, which is establishing a national anti-corruption commission, stepping up action on climate change, and cheaper medicines and childcare as notable Labor achievements.

He also wrote on the editorial pages of The Australian on Monday that he was “very proud of what we have been able to achieve this year through the partnership we have built with National Cabinet”.

“Our government has made boosting housing supply, affordability and construction a priority through 2023, and in August the National Cabinet met to agree on the largest set of housing reforms in a generation,” he wrote.

“Whether it's health, housing, the environment, TAFE and skills or the National Disability Insurance Scheme, our government knows that working for Australia means working with the states and territories.”

He also said that “moving wages and increasing job security through 2023 have been key priorities for our government.”

But as the country enters a political lull this summer, critics of the Albanian government have shown little inclination to grant him any reprieve.

On the same pages as Mr Albanese's piece, political commentator Peter van Onselen shredded what he called the “obfuscation” of an “incompetent” government over the Supreme Court ruling that freed about 150 prisoners, some with serious criminal records.

“As a government, it was not prepared for a potentially unfavorable ruling by the Supreme Court,” Van Onselen wrote.

“That should have been the case, and therefore these ministers should be dismissed by the Prime Minister. Attempts to misrepresent answers cannot ignore this simple truth.'

Sky News pundit and former chief of staff to Liberal Prime Minister Peta Credlin was in an even more ruthless mood late last month when six released prisoners were already facing charges over their brief period of freedom.

“This government, right down to the Prime Minister himself, looks completely incompetent, incompetent and, quite frankly, like a bunch of third-rate amateurs,” she said.

Credlin accused the government of “going from one thing to another” and hiding from the media as arrests increased.

“Perhaps worst of all is the prime minister's sheer cowardice,” she said.

“The fact that the Prime Minister hid in his office and away from the media when news of these arrests broke says it all

“That guy's a pretender. The Albanian is not up to the task and is excessive, and Australians now know it.”

After a prolonged honeymoon period in which Albanese and Labor maintained a healthy lead over the coalition and its leader Peter Dutton, the polls have delivered a number of brutal shocks to Labor in the second half of the year.

The latest Newspoll shows that support for the Albanian government has fallen by four points in just three weeks.

This left the Labor primary at 31 percent. For the first time, that number fell below the 32.6 percent they received when they took office.

On a two-party preferred basis, Labor and Coalition were neck and neck with a 50-50 split.

A YouGov poll last week showed Labour's primary vote had fallen even further to 29 per cent, an all-time low for the party.

However, on a two-party preferred basis, Labor would still have a 51 to 49 percent lead over the Coalition.

Although Labor polls did not immediately plummet following Albanese's resounding defeat with his signature Voice proposal in October, this can be seen as the turning point in terms of the fate of his government.

The issue that perhaps affects his government the most is the cost of living crisis.

A survey of four focus groups from marginal seats in Queensland and South Australia produced a worrying character assessment of Mr Albanese.

He was dismissed as a 'follower, not a leader', 'bland' and a 'beta male' by poll participants from Victorian company RedBridge.

“He hasn't really addressed the cost of living and I understand there are global factors at play, but I don't think he's taken much concrete action on it,” one attendee said.

“I just don't see much action on cost-of-living pressures. He's gone missing and now he's fleeing abroad again,” another commented, echoing the perception of frequent travel that has led to the unflattering nickname “Airbus Albo.”

The pressure on many households has been exacerbated by the relentless rise in interest rates.

Despite being granted a reprieve in December, the Reserve Bank's November hike marked the thirteenth time since May 2022 that interest rates have been raised to the current 12-year high of 4.35 percent.

Ominously, Reserve Bank Governor Michelle Bullock signaled that more pain could be coming for mortgage holders.

“Inflation in Australia has peaked, but is still too high and proving more persistent than expected a few months ago,” she said in November.

'The latest CPI inflation figures indicate that while goods price inflation has continued to decline, the prices of many services continue to rise sharply.'

Australia's acute housing shortage has also forced the Albanian government to admit that the immigration floodgates have been opened too wide.

More than 500,000 new migrants have flowed into Australia in the past 12 months, marking the largest annual influx in the country's history.

Addressing the issue, Albanese admitted that the immigration system was “seriously broken” but said his government was “committed to solving the problem.”