The prime minister’s decision to speak to the country could undermine what he was trying to convey, that everything is in hand and there is no need to panic
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When news that Anthony Albanese was planning an address to the nation spread around Canberra on Wednesday morning, memories of those deep, dark days during the worst of the pandemic came rushing back.
Amid fuel shortages and growing nervousness, a prime-time television address from the country’s leader was bound to remind anxious households of Covid-19 lockdowns and the chaos of the global financial crisis.