Anthony Albanese was riding high – then a single taunt about his $115,000 investment property portfolio got under his skin: ‘Juvenile’

Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather – a thorn in Anthony Albanese’s side – took just a week to fall out with the prime minister when he returned to parliament this year.

Mr Chandler-Mather was able to get under the Prime Minister’s shoes during Question Time on Monday with a comment about Mr Albanese’s rental property portfolio, which reportedly earns him around $115,000 a year.

“Labour’s refusal to phase out billions of dollars in tax breaks for property investors – like you – is denying millions of renters the chance to buy a home,” the 31-year-old first-term MP noted.

He added that 75 percent of Labor MPs own investment properties and questioned whether this influenced the government’s decision not to make changes to Australia’s negative gearing policy.

Mr Albanese – who has had a spring in his step in Parliament after his promise on stage three tax cuts was well received – was clearly frustrated by the question.

He hit back in a manner that Chandler-Mather has become all too familiar with since he was elected to represent the Brisbane seat of Griffith in May 2022.

“The idea that there will be a discussion with that youthful approach that we have seen from the opponents will not occur,” the prime minister said sharply.

‘This is not a student council, this is a parliament.

‘It is a parliament that has a responsibility, that has a responsibility to look after the people who put us here, not to stand on the stand.

“There will be no negotiations on that basis.”

Speaker Milton Dick noted that Mr Chandler-Mather’s question was “pretty close to the wind” and warned members against questioning the motives of other MPs with their questions.

Labor is well aware that any economic concession to the Greens could open them up to further criticism over broken promises, after the Prime Minister backed out of promising the third stage of tax cuts no fewer than 36 times.

While the decision was clearly politically sensible – polls show the majority of Australians are in favor of keeping more money in their own pockets – MPs are reluctant to be seen breaking further promises with things like negative gearing.

Mr Chandler-Mather appears to take pride in his ability to confuse the Prime Minister. Some insiders say he is a ghost from Albanese’s past and probably reminds the prime minister a bit of his younger self.

Both men came from Labour-loving families and joined the party themselves as teenagers, keen to embrace the party’s left-wing ideology.

Mr Chandler-Mather says he is not surprised or bothered by the frosty relationship he shares with the government

Mr Albanese was considered a ‘radical’ even within the left of his party and labeled a ‘troublemaker’

It wasn’t enough for Chandler-Mather, who left the party in 2013 in favor of the Greens.

In 2022, he spoke out about the decision, claiming he could not remain a member of a party willing to maintain offshore detention facilities in Nauru under Kevin Rudd.

‘I left the ALP in 2013 for the same reason why many people stopped voting for them. They have abandoned their principles, do not want to fix the rigged system and have no vision for a better life for all Australians,” he said in promotional material for his new party.

He was a member of the Labor Left faction during his time at the University of Queensland. Both of his parents were also members and reportedly encouraged him to join.

He worked for the United Voice union before becoming a union organizer for the National Tertiary Education Union after graduating.

Meanwhile, even within the left of his party, Mr. Albanese was considered a “radical” and labeled a “troublemaker.”

Mr Chandler-Mather, who represents the seat of Griffith in central Brisbane, has scathingly criticized the Labor government on social media over its housing policies – including housing subsidies – racking up millions of views.

At the age of 26 he was a leading member of the NSW Labor Left, and at the age of 33 he was elected to Grayndler.

Over the decades, the Prime Minister’s position on issues has softened.

He has been much more balanced in his assessment of the crisis in Palestine and Israel than he used to be, and has stepped back from his vocal commitment to the Uluru Declaration from the heart, despite the post-referendum defeat of the Indigenous Voice in the Parliament.

And he has made his dislike for Mr Chandler-Mather clear.