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

We get no questions on cost of living from those opposite—none. We're focused on getting costs down for families, getting wages up for workers and getting the budget onto a stronger foundation. We're managing the budget responsibly, and the question goes to that. We inherited a $78 billion deficit and turned that into a $22 billion surplus—a $100 billion turnaround and the first surplus in 15 years after the former government promised a surplus in their first year and every year thereafter when they were elected in 2013.

The result of that is that the Fitch Ratings agency, last week, reaffirmed our AAA rating. They said:

The government has saved the bulk of the recent revenue windfalls, indicating a desire to maintain a fiscal stance supportive of reducing inflation and pursue prudent fiscal policies.

That's what we have done.

We have three policies to drive down inflation, one of which is responsible fiscal policy. The second is dealing with supply chain issues, including fixing some of our trade relationships that were broken while the former government was in office.

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