Aaron Violi (Casey, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I would like to commend the member for Nichols for his contribution, a wonderful contribution about the importance of supporting farmers. We need to let farmers farm. My community has a strong agricultural community, like his, and it is so important that they can do their work and grow the food that feeds the country at a very cheap price. I also want to commend the member for Hume for this important motion. The cost of living is no doubt the biggest issue that the community is facing at the moment. They feel it every day. It was quite interesting that, when I was reading the papers on Sunday, I came across an article that I thought summed up my feelings quite well, so I will take the opportunity to read from the paper:

People feel the quality of life is going down and government makes it worse, with large targets for immigration and people forced out of affordable housing. They think we haven't solved [the cost-of-living crisis] and that [the voice] was a project for elites, not for them.

The government has to focus on cost of living.

Those are very strong words, a great quote from the member for Macarthur. The member for Macarthur has laid it out quite well for us all. The article also notes that many other Labor backbenchers supported his view but weren't prepared to go on the record, so I do commend the member for Macarthur for saying what many of those opposite are thinking and feeling. It takes courage for him to come out and say that. Hopefully some others on that side will follow his lead.

That's the reality with this Prime Minister, as the member for Macarthur put so well—he is not focused on costs of living and he doesn't have any answers for the Australian people. He doesn't have solutions to the problems the country faces. You see that in question time. Whenever he's asked a question by us or by his own side, he pivots and talks about the opposition and the opposition leader. I was trying to work out who he reminded me of, and it came to me today in question time. It's Brooks. For those that haven't seen TheShawshank RedemptionI'm sure many have—go and watch it. It's a great movie.

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