Keith Wolahan (Menzies, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Time puts things in perspective. We can look to a year ago, when we had an election, and how things have changed. But, before I do that, I'd like to look back a bit deeper to 1990. I remember 1990 as a child. The top hits were by Sinead O'Connor, MC Hammer and Madonna. I also remember it was a World Cup year and staying up late to watch the Italian World Cup with my dad. I also remember that year because that was the year where, in January, this country saw 17 per cent interest rates. It's often used as the high-water mark for a period where Australians did it particularly tough. It was particularly tough because it led into a recession that we didn't have to have. It's often used, for those who can remember that time, in folklore.

I remember my father—we hadn't long been arrived in Australia—qualified as a roof plumber. He qualified as a roof plumber to start his own business as a tradesman who could help people and also help our family to put his three boys through school. But I remember that recession hit so hard because it was a choice between keeping your home or keeping your business. I fear that we are heading into a very similar period in Australian economic history. We can trade insults about who's to blame and who's the best economic manager, but real Australians are hurting right now.

Recently I went and met a cafe owner in my area who runs Project Black. It is an enormously successful business in Mitcham. In fact, it was voted as the second-best coffee in Melbourne. I sat down to talk to him, to listen to him as to what it's actually like for someone running a small business. He said he would like to employ more people, but he can't. He can't afford it. The increased costs of energy, of labour and of interest rates mean he and his wife are the ones who have to work seven days a week. He noted that, after the lockdowns ended in Melbourne, he was serving about 70 kilograms of coffee a week. I asked him, 'How many kilos are you serving now?' and he said, 'Thirty kilos a week.' In an impassioned Facebook post to his customers, he said: 'I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry that I might have to increase the price of your coffee.' He's such a good small-business owner that he takes pride in his product and pride in his customers, and he knew that they were struggling to pay the increased costs that he's facing. He said to me that he's worried that he may not survive.

I worry that those are some of the decisions that small businesses are facing again just like they did in 1990—only it's potentially worse. We talk about 17 per cent interest rates like it's a number by itself, but what is important is the ratio of that interest rate to the debt that Australians have. Australians now have three times the debt that we had in 1990. Let's not forget what happened in 1990. The percentage of mortgage interest rate payments as a share of total household income went from 4.5 per cent to six per cent. What did that do? That saw a huge increase in unemployment in this country, a huge increase in defaults and a huge increase in small businesses closing. It took the best part of a decade to recover from that.

Part of that recovery saw a Liberal government reduce debt, reduce spending and reduce the size of government, because government is not the answer for small businesses. They do it themselves. We've heard speech after speech about how those opposite are the great saviours for people who are struggling, how it's the government that will provide answers. It's not. That is an insult to the people like the owner of Project Black cafe in Mitcham. It is they who are doing the work. He doesn't go to sleep every night thanking you and thanking the Albanese government for the great things you're doing for him. He goes to sleep every night thinking: 'What school trip am I going to have to cut tomorrow? What sporting program will my children not be able to go to? What fresh meat will I not be able to serve on the dinner table, because it might go off and I can't afford it anymore?' And he's going to think: 'Who will I have to let go of in my business? And what second job will I have to take just to pay the increased mortgage payments that I have on my house and my business?' The numbers are extreme. I've spoken about 1990, but you only have to go back one year ago. Australians are entitled to ask if they are better off now than they were a year ago, and $25,000 a year more has to be found. That is before tax income. So families have to find an extra income of $50,000 or savings of $25,000. When you sit down and go through that exercise, that is a tough ask for families, and we should all do better.

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