Garth Hamilton (Groom, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

It's a great joy to have the member for Spence back on the rotation. I always make an effort to try and find one point I can agree with the last speaker on. I'm wholeheartedly all-in on the line, 'It's not going to get too much better.' I think that's very much the situation Australia faces right now. It's not going to get too much better.

I'm sure that, if we reach across the parliament and we speak honestly, we'd all be of the same view as we go out and meet our constituents, be it doorknocking, by phone or out and about at the shops: cost of living is the No. 1 pressure. It's the No. 1 thing impacting families and small businesses. It's forcing some very difficult decisions to be made, and we're seeing the impact of that right across the economy.

But in the midst of that, I'm so pleased to hear from the Prime Minister not to worry, because, to quote him, 'It's been a good 10 months.' That leads to two questions, the first of which is: for whom? For whom has it been a good 10 months? I'll tell you what: if you were happy to see the ABCC abolished; that was probably pretty good. If you're happy to see the IR legislation that forces people from individual agreements onto enterprise agreements; that was probably pretty good. It might give you a very clear view of who it's been a good 10 months for. It certainly hasn't been a very good 10 months for the Australian people, who've been struggling through this cost-of-living crisis. In fact, it's been some of the hardest times in memory.

I will just turn to a few of the headlines that have been talking about how much this is the case. A CourierMail headline from 7 March is 'House of pain: rate rises, soaring prices add $1150 a month to bills'. That's year on year. That is talking about how this is hurting. Protea Place was named in that article This is a charity that looks after homeless women in my region. This year, for the first time ever, they've been unable to sell enough tickets to their fundraiser. This is the main vehicle they have to keep their organisation going. It has not been a good 10 months for them.

Here is a Channel 9 headline: 'Here's what Aussies are buying less of as cost-of-living crisis bites'. John, in my electorate, owns a spa in Southtown. He tells me the story of his regular customers coming in. They're older, vulnerable women coming up and quietly, almost whispering, saying to him: 'Do you sell this product in a smaller size?' I can't afford this one.' It has not been a good 10 months for them.

Another Nine news headline is 'Credit card spending reaches record high levels amid cost-of-living crisis'. I spoke to Tristan in my electorate, from Wantima. He has done a fantastic survey amongst Aboriginal youth in my area and just a bit to the north, and No. 3 on the list of issues affecting them was mental health as a result of debt levels that they were carrying. Across this last year, as costs rose, these debt levels were rising, adding to the difficulties of these people living through it. It has not been a good 10 months for them. I can go on, and I will. The previous speakers are very right: this is an issue you've heard about before and it's an issue you'll hear about again and again and again. This is the No. 1 issue facing the Australian people right now.

It was a very good promise to have made to reduce energy bills by $275. It was a terrible promise to break. We will go on. A news.com headline reads '"To the wall": iconic city restaurant falls victim to cost of living crisis'. This is Caruso's, which had been operating for 17 years. The No. 1 issue they raised as to why they had to shut their doors was rising electricity prices. The member for Hughes raised this issue in question time, and when she raised it the Prime Minister's response was, 'Why don't you go back and tell him that you didn't vote for our legislation?' I think this gives you an insight into how out of touch this Prime Minister is. Why didn't we vote for legislation that has failed? Yes, it has not been a great 10 months.

I said that the statement, 'It's been a good 10 months,' raises two questions. The first one was: for whom? The second one is: if this is what a good 10 months looks like, what does a good three years look like? That's the question for the Australian people: what does a good three years look like? More of this. More rising prices and higher inflation keeping that pressure on families and small businesses. Every time we raise with the Prime Minister an example of someone from our constituency and the pressures that they're under and he turns a blind eye and a deaf ear to the challenges that are being faced, it shows how out of touch this Prime Minister is.

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