Labor Pledges No Return to COVID-Era Restrictions Amid Fuel Crisis

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor says around 600 petrol stations are now without without one type of fuel across the country.

Fuel prices are displayed at a petrol station in the Melbourne suburb of Williamstown in Australia on March 26, 2026. William West/AFP via Getty Images

Federal Labor Treasurer Jim Chalmers has reassured Australians the government will avoid COVID-style restrictions or rationing as fuel prices surge and supply tightens across 500 service stations.

“One of the reasons why the prime minister has brought the states and territories together today [for National Cabinet] is because we want to avoid harsh restrictions, we want to avoid those kind of heavy‑handed COVID interventions, and to make sure that people are doing the most responsible thing they can,” Chalmers said on on ABC News Breakfast on March 30.