AS IT HAPPENED: Calls grow for early election, Opposition leader doubles down on calling Prime Minister 'arrogant prick'

Thanks for reading our rolling coverage on federal politics.

Today, Opposition Leader Angus Taylor refused to say whether he regretted calling Prime Minister Anthony Albanese an "arrogant prick".

One Nation joined the Nationals' call for an early election over the government's tax reform introduced into parliament yesterday.

The Greens have called for a national rent freeze, saying the budget has done nothing to support renters.

And former prime minister Tony Abbott has given a rousing speech as he became the next Liberal Party president.

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The former prime minister ended his speech by declaring he will persuade voters back to the Coalition and boost member numbers up from the current 50,000 in his new role as Liberal president.

"It's not enough to simply have good policy. There has to be a strong organisation in the country to back our leader," he said.

"I promise you we are under new management.

"We are hungry to win for our country's sake."

Incoming Liberal Party President Tony Abbott said he will help the party through its "existential crisis" and help Angus Taylor into government.

"I do declare that nothing that I have achieved in my public life could have been possible without the support of hundreds and thousands of Liberals right across this country," he said at a Liberal Party conference in Victoria this afternoon.

"I owe the Liberal Party big time.

"That's why I regard it as my duty to serve the party in this time of existential crisis.

"As the last successful federal leader of the opposition, I do believe I have the ability to help Angus Taylor to be the next successful federal leader of the opposition and to become our 32nd prime minister."

Independent senator David Pocock has said the government has released an exposure draft gambling legislation late this Friday afternoon to avoid scrutiny for their "weak action".

"The Albanese government's gambling 'reforms' are essentially smoke and mirrors when it comes to sport," he said.

"It implements just three of the Murphy Report's 31 recommendations with a partial ad ban and nothing to address inducements or establish a national regulator."

The exposure draft legislation published today includes four measures:

1) new restrictions on wagering ads, including a ban during live sports coverage and new requirements for online services

2) strengthen existing rules against illegal gambling services

3) improve BetStop

4) ban online keno, foreign lotteries and address gaps in the regulation by clarifying the definition of trade promotion gambling services

Pocock - a former international rugby union star - said gambling ads will still be allowed during live sporting games after 8.30pm, during half-time, and in unscheduled breaks, creating a loophole.

"Research shows that if children start watching a game they will continue until it is finished, particularly if their team is playing," he said.

"So despite what the prime minister has been saying, by leaving this loophole intact, he is continuing to strengthen the link between sport and gambling for young people."

Firefighters say they have been left behind in the Commonwealth's $2 billion legal case against 3M - the manufacturer of firefighting foam that contained PFAS "forever chemicals" and contaminated 28 defence bases.

Yesterday, Attorney-General Michelle Rowland and Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil announced the government had commenced legal proceedings against the global company to recover past and future costs of cleaning up the damages.

RSL Australia is calling for the government to widen the legal action to include the cost of caring for veteran firefighters who handled the PFAS foam for decades.

"Today, statutory compensation reaches only a small cohort of former Air Force trainee firefighters," RSL National President Peter Tinley said.

"Thousands of defence personnel across the ADF handled these deadly substances as part of their everyday duties, and most have never even been tested, let alone supported."

Greens Senator David Shoebridge said any rent rises that come out of Labor's tax reform are price gouging as most property owners are set to keep their existing benefits.

"Any landlord who is coming out as a result of this to raise rents is a plain gouger," he said.

Shoebridge criticised the tax changes for not going far enough and called for a rent freeze - something the Greens have been campaigning for years.

"This is why the Greens have been saying the national government should be leading a national push for a rent freeze," he said.

"We know renters are being gouged time after time."

Under Labor's proposal, the grandfathering of negative gearing won't apply to properties held before 7.30pm on May 12 while the capital gains reforms won't apply to any gains accuring up to June 30 2027.

Labor needs the support of the Greens to pass their changes in parliament.

Pauline Hanson is on the road speaking to people in rural Queensland.

She shared an image of herself in Childers with a "Pauline for PM" birthday cupcake.

She also met with billionaire Clive Palmer on her birthday earlier this week.

Australia has secured its first vessel in its maritime strategic fleet - the ANL Kokoda.

Agencies will use the large cargo ship in times of emergency and disaster to deliver supplies and equipment.

It is the first of a five-year pilot program to rebuild the national shipping industry.

"Recent global events have emphasised the importance of Australia having a resilient domestic maritime sector," Transport Minister Catherine King said.

"The ANL Kokoda will provide critical maritime capabilities, including by adding a new tool to be able to respond to disruption events."

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been defending his tax changes since they were announced in the budget earlier this month.

Today, he took to social media to answer some questions sent in about the effects of the capital gains tax discount and negative gearing changes.

It seems like Australians were wondering what the tax changes are, how they will help first home buyers and how else the government is responding to the housing crisis.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen has accused his opposition counterpart, Dan Tehan, of being out of touch with his party happenings.

The shadow energy minister said he will write to the auditor-general and request it to examine Labor's home battery scheme after The Australian reported the government asked the Clean Energy Regulator to help fund the program after it ran over budget.

Bowen said he had to move money in the budget around as the scheme was even more popular than expected.

"These sorts of movements of funds are quite normal, quite regular," he said.

He then accused Tehan of not being across the opposition brief.

"We've got a shadow minister not across his brief because the opposition wrote to the auditor-general in February asking for an audit," he said.

"They just keep on writing the same old letter."