Steve Georganas (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It's a great pleasure to be here to speak on our Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2024-2025, and I do so because I feel very proud to belong to a Labor government that has delivered, in consecutive budgets, a surplus, as well as delivering measures to make sure pressure on the cost of living is moved downwards—things like a Future Made in Australia, which will benefit our future economic growth as a nation. To have a good economy you need good future economic growth and products that we can make here in Australia to export as well as use locally. And, as I said, this was the second consecutive surplus that's been delivered in many, many years.

Of course the budget centrepiece, I suppose, which will really bring cost-of-living pressures downward, is the tax cuts. Under this government and under the announcements made in the budget and previously, the tax cuts will deliver, for someone earning $130,000, for example, $2,600 per person. Someone on $73,000 will get a tax cut of $1,500. And approximately two million workers who earn under $45,000—the minimum that they can earn—will be better off under this government, whereas under the previous government's proposals there was nothing: not a single dollar in it for people earning under $45,000. That will assist people in this current economic climate. The energy rebate of $300 per household will assist people with their energy costs.

And of course there is the largest investment ever, by any government, in housing. An extra $32 billion was put into our investment in housing to assist with the current housing crisis that we have. We know that the first port of call in anyone's life is getting a roof over their head. That is the beginning and the foundation of any structure in life. First you need to have that security of knowing you have somewhere to live, a roof over your head. We know that is so important. That's why we are investing $32 billion in housing.

And of course there were the announcements of the urgent care clinics—adding another 29 across the country, hopefully one in my electorate, which will assist in getting those hospital lists down and freeing up the emergency departments. We've already seen some operating in Adelaide near and around my electorate, already putting downward pressure on emergency departments. We've seen the biggest investment in bulk-billing in history, unlike from the previous government, under which rebates didn't go up, and we were seeing the copayments continually increasing. But we've now had the biggest investment in bulk-billing in Australia's history and are seeing those copayments going downwards. And, as I said earlier, we will have a Future Made in Australia.

In my electorate some great infrastructure projects are taking place, which have been going on for quite some time now. For example, the North-South Corridor, which basically starts in the northern suburbs and finishes at the end of the southern suburbs, in metropolitan Adelaide, has had a lot of work done to it. I've just got to add a bit of history here so that this chamber is aware of how all of this started. This was an announcement by the Rudd-Gillard government back in 2010. I clearly recall turning the first sod with the member for Grayndler, now Australia's Prime Minister, back in 2012 or 2013 in the section that was in my electorate. I'm pleased to say that work has begun between that area of South Road on Hindmarsh through to Crowder Park, which will see a tunnel underneath where the current South Road is. Hopefully that will continue and will free up a lot of traffic.

We've also seen announcements for the Marion Road and Sir Donald Bradman Drive intersection in Cowandilla, in my electorate. This intersection gets so congested, so this is a great announcement by the federal government, together with the state government, to free that blockage up with infrastructure works there. And, of course, the Grange Road-Holbrooks Road-East Avenue works to assist with congestion as well.

One of the infrastructure projects taking place in my electorate is the Cross Road-Marion Road tram crossing. It was announced under the previous government, but nothing was done. It was an election promise in 2013, but 2013 came and went. Then 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019—they all came and went and not a thing was done. It took a Labor government to come up with the funding and the investment of billions of dollars, which will assist the traffic in that area, which is right on the border of the electorate of Hindmarsh, the electorate of Adelaide and the electorate of Boothby.

These are real actions that are being taken by this Labor government to assist people's lives. Whether it be energy costs in giving that rebate of $300 or more money for Medicare or tax cuts: all these things make a difference in people's lives. And as I said, tax cuts will be affecting 13.6 million people. People across this country will receive a tax cut. This includes 93,000 people in the Adelaide electorate. Every single taxpayer will receive a tax cut. The average tax cut for taxpayers in my electorate of Adelaide will be approximately $1,540. That is the average tax cut to every person in my electorate.

Labor's tax cuts will deliver a bigger tax cut for Middle Australia to help with the cost of living, to put downward pressure on the increases in costs of living. Labor's tax cuts will provide greater tax relief to low- and middle-income taxpayers from 1 July 2024, which is coming up soon. A majority, 90 per cent, of women taxpayers will be retaining, on average, an additional $707 per year compared with the previously legislated tax cuts.

As I said, we've also increased the Medicare levy low-income thresholds from 2023-24, ensuring more than one million low-income taxpayers continue to be exempt from the Medicare levy or pay a reduced levy rate. And there is the $3.5 billion in energy bill relief for all Australian households and one million eligible small businesses.

A big issue in my electorate is HECS and the HECS-HELP relief for students. We know that the government will cut $3 billion in student debt for more than three million Australians. This means the change will support 29,157 people within the seat of Adelaide who will get this HECS-HELP relief for students. The Albanese Labor government has invested almost $4 billion to deliver cheaper medicines to ease pressures on household budgets, and by freezing the PBS, which is assisting people, the PBS co-payment, and adding more medicines to the PBS. What does this mean for the residents in the federal seat of Adelaide? We have already saved $3,742,669 thanks to this government's commitment to deliver cheaper medicines. Everyone in the federal seat of Adelaide who accesses the PBS medicines are set to save even more.

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