Forget the bottles of bubbly – Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has kicked off his federal election victory lap by taking in a cappuccino in the heart of his inner Sydney electorate with fiancée Jodie Haydon.
And where better to celebrate a win he described as being a triumph for traditional Aussie values, than one of his seat of Grayndler’s most traditional venues: Bar Italia.
Indeed, the famed Leichhardt institution, which has stood in pride of place on Norton St for nigh on seven decades, is so traditional, staff refuse to serve anything other than full cream milk in their coffees – and only accept cash.
Though the Prime Minister revealed it wasn’t just the quality cuppas that lured there on Sunday morning: he also wanted to pay tribute to the memory of his late mother – and the values she instill in him – following his landslide coup.
The old-school trattoria, a short stroll from his childhood housing commission home in nearby Camperdown, had been his mother Maryanne Ellery’s favourite café .
And they had enjoyed time there together right through until her death from a brain aneurysm in 2002.
‘I used to visit this coffee shop with my mum,’ he told reporters during his visit on Sunday morning.
‘I grew up just down the road here and I did certainly think of her last night as well. She would be very proud.’
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese kicked off his federal election victory lap with a visit to famed Leichhardt trattoria Bar Italia in the heart of his inner Sydney electorate
Mr Albanese and his fiancée enjoy a coffee with staunch supporters, including Labor senator Katy Gallagher, at Bar Italia on Sunday morning
Mr Albanese and his fiancée were joined at the trattoria on Sunday by a host of his staunchest supporters, including Labor senator Katy Gallagher and MP Jerome Laxale, who managed to retain the party’s grasp on the once blue-ribbon Liberal seat of Bennelong in Saturday’s election.
‘There wasn’t one second that Jerome doubted his capacity to win,’ Mr Albanese said.
And after being served their cappuccinos, he added it was now time for Labor’s newly returned – and newly minted – MPs to serve the Australian public.
And he started by serving up ice creams while reiterating his government’s commitment to the people.
‘We will be a disciplined, orderly government in our second term, just like we had been in our first,’ Mr Albanese pledged.
‘We have been given a great honour of serving the Australian people, and we don’t take them for granted, and we will work hard every day.’
Albanese has previously spoken about the special bond he shared with his single mother, who was on a disability pension, in Sydney’s inner west.
‘Mum had rheumatoid arthritis that crippled her joints and meant she couldn’t work. She lived on a disability pension,’ Mr Albanese said while opening up about his mother on social media in 2021.
Mr Albanese promised to serve the public… starting with some ice cream
‘Life wasn’t easy, and her health made things even harder – but we got through because of her.
‘We lived in council housing, which gave us a sense of security and stability. It was our home.
‘She taught me how to save – and how to spend wisely – because every dollar had to count.
‘She also taught me the most important lesson of all: the importance of leaving no one behind.
‘Truth is, mum was left behind – by people who counted her out, and by governments who cut back support.
‘The cutbacks that happened in mum’s lifetime meant she had to justify the support she was receiving.
‘When health funding was cut, the quality of mum’s care was cut too.
‘And when they tried to sell our council house, it felt like our home was being taken from us.
Federal opposition leader Anthony Albanese (right) with mum Maryanne Ellery and son Nathan
The Prime Minister credits his mother with inspiring him to dedicate his life to public service
‘I know the difference that governments can make on people’s lives because I lived it. Mum lived it.
‘It’s what motivated me to get into politics. To help people. To make life better for people. To make sure no one is left behind.
‘Mum always gave me unconditional love. And I feel very privileged to have had that.’
Mr Albanese revealed how she was rushed to hospital on Mother’s Day in 2002 after suffering from a brain aneurism before dying two weeks later.
‘Mother’s Day is such a special day, but for me and many others it’s always a bit difficult,’ he said.
‘Mother’s Day was the day my mum went to hospital and never came back.
He said he had flown to Sydney from Canberra to take Ms Ellery and her sister Margaret to a Mother’s Day lunch.
‘When I got to her home in Camperdown, I knew something wasn’t right. The front door had been left open.’
The Labor leader (right) grew up in social housing with his single mum (left) in Sydney
‘After decades of health problems, mum had a brain aneurysm, and was rushed to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. Mum would spend two weeks in hospital before finally passing.
‘Over those two weeks, we said goodbye – twice. Both times she came through – she was a real fighter. On the third time, she didn’t make it.’
Ms Ellery died on May 25 and, in the quarter of a century since, Mr Albanese said he has visited her cemetery every Mother’s Day to ‘remember how much she sacrificed’ for him.
‘Mum always gave me unconditional love. And I feel very privileged to have had that,’ he wrote.
Mr Albanese believed his Italian father Carlo Albanese was dead until he was 15-years-old, and only met him at age 46 in 2009, seven years after his mum died, before he too passed in 2014.
