Video of Anthony Albanese holding two cups of coffee has come back to haunt him

Anthony Albanese’s video on the price of regular coffee has backfired, despite the Prime Minister wanting to end surcharges on payment cards.

The Australian Labor Party shared a video on social media on Thursday showing Mr Albanese comparing the price of two takeaway coffees.

“This flat white is five bucks,” he said, holding up a cup.

“And this one costs $5.10. Why? Because this was paid with cash and this one with pin.

‘It’s not fair. These excessive card surcharges just don’t add up and over the course of a year it adds up.

‘So we are preparing for a ban on debit card surcharges.’

However, many cafe shop owners spoke to him about the proposed ban.

‘As a coffee shop owner, this will only increase coffee prices to cover the banks’ storage costs.’

Another added: “Then stop charging exorbitant fees to small business owners.

‘Don’t punish us for trying to keep our heads above water. Eftpos costs cost me thousands a year if I don’t pass them on to my customers.’

A third said: ‘Is it right for the coffee shops to just pay the electronic transaction fees which will either cause them to collapse or raise their prices? Mess.’

“Let the small businesses that have to pay fortunes to run Efptos machines foot the bill,” a fourth added.

However, Rashays owner Rami Ykmour praised the government for the ban on surcharges and called on Mr Albanese to go a step further.

‘If you listen carefully to Mr Albanese, who says he only wants to write off the costs of the debit card, he will come up short again.

‘It must be removed from all cards, debit and credit cards. Mr. Albanese, stop playing us.”

He explained that Rashays no longer charges debit and credit card fees on transactions. Instead, the company now absorbs these costs as part of its daily operating expenses.

Other Aussies took the opportunity to question the Prime Minister, some pointing to his recent $4.3 million purchase of his waterfront estate on the NSW Central Coast.

“Does coffee cost $4.3 million on the Central Coast?” wrote one.

“Yes, because it’s Eftpos fees that are the reason families are sleeping in cars,” said another, referring to Australia’s housing crisis.

‘You know what else is wrong, Albo? We are taxed on our wages, and then on fuel, groceries, clothes and everything else we buy,” one person commented.

‘So I got my tax bill and it says I can pay by credit or debit card, but I’ll be charged a card fee. So it’s okay for the government to charge fees?’ said one.

“Coffee actually cost $3 before you came to power,” wrote another.

Meanwhile, others praised the Prime Minister for taking steps to abolish the surcharge altogether.

“Good job Albo,” someone said.

“Good idea, it would be nice if everything cost what you say at the checkout,” said another.

“Excellent news,” said a third.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission will receive an additional $2.1 million in funding to investigate the fees companies pay to banks for using card readers that are ultimately passed on to shoppers.

Labor is looking at ways to reduce the price of groceries and other costs for struggling households.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the government was prepared to ban surcharges on debit cards from early 2026, pending further consultation by the Reserve Bank of Australia.

“Consumers should not be penalized for using cards or digital payments, and at the same time, small businesses should not have to pay high fees just to get paid,” he said.

‘We are prepared to ban surcharges on debit cards, subject to further work from the Reserve Bank and safeguards to ensure small businesses and consumers can both benefit from lower costs.’

The RBA is responsible for regulating the payments system and is conducting an investigation into the costs to merchants and the level of surcharges levied on consumers.

Months ago, National Australia Bank boss Andrew Irvine admitted surcharges on card payments were outdated and “outrageous”.

He said surcharges may have been justified 20 years ago when card payments were rare and most people paid in cash, but not today.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the ‘number one priority is to alleviate the cost of living for households and businesses, and this is another step to protect Australians.”

While inserting a card into an Eftpos machine typically costs a merchant less than 0.5 percent per transaction, using contactless Visa and Mastercard payments can cost 0.5 to 1 percent each for debit cards and 1 to 1. 5 percent for credit cards.

On a $100 purchase, the average added cost is 28c for EFTPOS, 52c for using the Mastercard network, 47c for using Visa and a whopping $1.88 for digital payment provider Square.

While some larger companies pass these costs on in the price of their goods and services, many smaller companies pass them on in the form of higher prices.