Aug 27, 2026 – 7.01pmAnthony Albanese has intervened to head off a damaging internal Labor Party brawl over immigration by killing off a plan to reduce the annual refugee intake by a third, further complicating the government’s efforts to craft a policy to reduce arrivals.After The Australian Financial Review revealed the government had decided to reduce the annual humanitarian intake from 20,000, where it has been since 2023, to the long-run base figure of 13,750 next financial year, Albanese said late on Thursday that the annual quota would stay at 20,000.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Fetching latest articles