Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

On 5 April, the Leader of the Opposition said:

And also the headwinds. I mean inflation is very high in the United States, and we have to be again realistic about what's happening economically over the coming years.

On 3 May, he went on to say:

… nobody wants to see interest rates go up, but it's a reality of a world where there's inflation. I think Australians understand that …

… … …

… there's a lot of pressure—upward pressure—on interest rates at the moment.

The Shadow Treasurer said: 'We're facing circumstances in what's happening in the Ukraine and Russia that were not expected and very hard to predict. These pressures are driven by extenuating circumstances.' So they had a lot to say about the difficulties that Australia is facing due to the global impact, which is a global inflationary pressure that is seeing central banks around the world with the fastest and most consistent tightening of monetary policy that we have seen in many decades.

What last night's responsible budget, handed down by the Treasurer, did was to have fiscal policy work in partnership with monetary policy, rather than against it. We make no apologies for the fact that we have brought in responsible measures, including responsible measures on the cost of living; cheaper child care—and those opposite aren't quite sure whether they're against or for that—

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