CANBERRA, April 29 (Xinhua) -- The Australian government has made up ground on the Opposition with only three weeks to go until the general election, a poll has found.

According to the latest Newspoll released on Monday, the incumbent Liberal-National Party coalition (LNP) now trails the Australian Labor Party (ALP) 49-51 on a two-party preferred basis -- a significant improvement from the 46-54 recorded in mid-March.

It represents the best Newspoll result for the LNP since Scott Morrison was sworn in as Australia's 30th prime minister in August 2018.

However, if the 49-51 result was replicated in the general election on May 18 the ALP would take power, wining at least 77 out of 151 seats in the lower house of Australia's Parliament, the House of Representatives.

The results of the poll were released as Morrison and ALP leader Bill Shorten prepare to face-off in the first leaders' debate of the election campaign in Perth on Monday night.

Shorten has closed the gap on Morrison as Australia's preferred PM according to Newspoll, with 37 percent of voters choosing the ALP leader compared to 45 percent for Morrison compared to 35 and 46 percent respectively in mid-April.

Simon Birmingham, the Minister for Trade and the LNP's Campaign Spokesman, welcomed the results of the poll, pointing out that it coincided with early voting centers opening on Monday.

"What we're seeing is that as the campaign goes on, Australians are asking more questions and are understanding the very stark choices at play in this election campaign," he told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television.

"And you know, many Australians start to vote today, and they'll go to the polls in a situation where Bill Shorten continues to refuse to detail the cost of his tax policies."