Chris Bowen (Prospect, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I am happy to talk about recklessness and inconsistency in economic policy, because we have heard plenty of that from the honourable gentlemen opposite in the last half an hour. As the Treasurer said, we have seen the shadow Treasurer grappling, struggling, with the issue of inflation since he became shadow Treasurer. We have seen him desperately searching for the right sound grab. He has tried to claim that inflation was not a problem. He has tried to deny that it was at a 16-year high. And, as the Treasurer said, he had a shocker on Insiders. It was a woeful performance. He should have stayed in bed. The country would have been better off, and he certainly would have been better off. We saw him say on Insiders:

The other measurers of inflation, so-called “underlying inflations”, which are statistical adjustments are … none of them were 3.6 per cent, not one. So, where the 3.6 per cent comes from, I could make a guess but it is not one that was published by the RBA.

That was the shadow Treasurer on the Insiders program on Sunday. I am happy to table the RBA February statement, which was released the next day: underlying inflation, you guessed it, of 3.6 per cent. No wonder he is having trouble.

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