Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

It's an honour to serve with the member for Hunter, and I thank him for his question. Inflation is easing in our economy in welcome ways, but we know that Australians are still under substantial pressure. More jobs were created in our first year than under any other new government, but we know that there's a lot of global economic uncertainty, and that combined with higher interest rates is slowing our economy here at home. We saw that in the retail figures out today, which were very soft.

In this environment, the government's No. 1 priority is rolling out billions of dollars of help with the cost of living. That assistance is being delivered in ways that address the most pressing parts of our inflation challenge and in targeted ways that make the job of the independent Reserve Bank easier, not harder. We're doing that at the same time that we're delivering the first budget surplus in 15 years and investing in supply side issues which were ignored for a wasted decade. You would think that those people in this place who come in here and ask questions about people doing it tough would actually put their hands up to help people who were doing it tough, but, sadly, that hasn't been the case.

I want to give the House a few examples. When five million Australians needed them to vote for some help with their electricity bills, they voted for even higher electricity bills instead. When Australians needed them to vote for price caps on gas and coal, they voted for even higher energy prices instead. When vulnerable and homeless people needed them to vote for more social and affordable housing, they voted for fewer homes instead. When six million Australians with chronic conditions need cheaper medicines, those opposite say that they'll vote for medicines to be more expensive instead.

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