Melissa Price (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'm very pleased to support this motion regarding the cost of living, because it is simply acknowledging reality. It is a truth that those opposite hate to admit and struggle to explain to their constituents that it has not been easy under Prime Minister Albanese. Since Labor was elected the cost of living has increased dramatically. In just 15 short months food and grocery prices are up by 8.2 per cent, housing prices have increased by 10.4 per cent, insurance is up by 17.3 per cent, electricity is up by 18.2 per cent and gas is up by a whopping 28 per cent. And we know that millions of Australians have been hit hard by the 12 interest rate rises that have occurred under this government. With interest rates rising to their highest level since 2011, families with a mortgage of $750,000 are now paying an extra $24,000 per year on repayments. The rising cost pressures are being felt right across the country and are often just too hard to juggle, particularly when we consider that real wages for a working family have fallen by five per cent in the last 12 months.

Incredibly, there are now more Australians relying on hardship programs than there were during the peak of the pandemic. We've had wonderful charities like Foodbank WA confirm that they are now assisting dual-income households, a demographic they could never have expected to be supporting. It's hard to believe that in the lucky country that we call Australia, that we call home, there are mums and dads who are both working, both earning an income, yet unable to put food on the table for their family. This is heartbreaking for proud Australian parents.

Despite the rising cost of living repeatedly being highlighted as the No. 1 concern amongst everyday Australians, the Prime Minister has not developed a serious plan to address the crisis that this government is largely responsible for. Last week we had the governor of the Reserve Bank confirm that Australia's world-leading inflation is being driven by domestic factors. This was no shock, considering that, since coming to government, Labor has added $188 billion in spending, only making inflation worse, and that's just one example.

The government has chosen to bring in a staggering record number of migrants, meaning Australia's population is growing at its highest rate in 70 years, with this government intending to bring in some 1.5 million people over the next five years. There's just one problem: where are they all going to live? This is such recklessness. Is it any wonder we are seeing record low rental vacancy rates? Renters are now experiencing the highest increases in rent since 2009, and the dream of home ownership is becoming increasingly difficult to imagine, with the CEO of ANZ recently warning that home loans are becoming only for the rich.

Then there is their reckless energy policy, which has set a target of 82 per cent renewables by 2030, rising rapidly from the current mark of 30 to 35 per cent. Of course, this transition is not free and is driving up the price of electricity, which is a key driver of inflation. This is just another broken promise. Before the election we were told time and time again that, under Labor, Australians would save $275 a year on electricity. Instead—well, we all know what's happening—they are now paying well above what they were paying before the last election.

But, instead of being focused on bringing down the cost of living, the Albanese government has spent all its time and energy elsewhere. At the same time they are trying to avert blame, saying that this has nothing to do with them and that it is all being driven by global factors. If that's the case, then why is our inflation higher than that of most developed countries?

Before the election, the Prime Minister promised to make tackling the cost of living a priority. Since then, he's not developed a plan to curb inflation and has been focusing on the wrong priorities. This is a real crisis, and we need our Prime Minister to focus on what's important for everyday Australians. So I call on the Prime Minister and the Treasurer to do their jobs and come up with a real plan to combat the cost of living, because every day they refuse to address this crisis Australians are hurting, and Australians deserve so much better.

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