Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Labor has worked hard to help Australians with the cost of living, but we know there is still more to do, particularly in regional and remote Northern Territory. Offering tax cuts, energy rebates and wiping student debt are important in our Labor budget of delivering cost-of-living relief for every Australian, including people in my electorate. I work hard in the electorate to build strong and sustainable communities that provide relief to those most in need at times when they need it the most. That is why it's so important that the many Territorians in Lingiari benefited from a tax cut from 1 July 2024. The Albanese Labor government is focused on easing the cost-of-living pressures and is committed to ensuring every working Australia keeps more of what they earn.

The cost of living remains a major issue of concern for everyone, particularly in my electorate. My constituents are feeling the pressure from higher global energy prices. From 1 July we are delivering $300 of energy bill relief for every Australian household, including those in my electorate of Lingiari. We're also providing small businesses with an energy rebate of $325, which is good for local business and local consumers. This is on top of extending for a further 12 months the $20,000 instant asset write-off, and there has been good feedback from some of those small businesses in my electorate. We're also hearing from farmers and pastoralists on the federal government's On Farm Connectivity Program, which provides farmers and pastoralists with rebates of as much as $30,000 for investing in state-of-the-art agricultural technology.

I wonder if members on the other side tell their constituents that, when we talk about fighting inflation and easing the cost of living, they have voted, for the last two years, against every cost-of-living relief measure. They have never supported any of the cost-of-living relief measures, and they stand up and say they have solutions to offer, but I have yet to see any of those solutions come forward. And it's not just about a few electorates; it's about the whole of Australia, including those in my electorate, where we see the most disadvantage.

Labor is building on last year's budget investment for all Australians relying on the social security safety net. From this year, the Albanese government is increasing maximum rates of Commonwealth rent assistant by a further 10 per cent to help relieve rental stress.

In the last six months before the last election, the financial viability of general practice was in serious trouble, particularly in my electorate of Lingiari, after the coalition's six-year freeze on the Medicare rebate. Bulk-billing was falling off a cliff. That's why Labor tripled the bulk-billing incentive from 1 November last year, with the largest investment in bulk-billing in history. In my electorate, we have seen a 3.4 per cent rise, from 75 per cent of all GP visits being bulk-billed in October to 79 per cent in May, a huge increase in the electorate of Lingiari. When I talk to a lot of the GPs, they say that bulk-billing has increased by about 4.8 per cent. The residents in my electorate of Lingiari have also made 11,000 visits to the Mparntwe—or Alice Springs—and the Palmerston Medicare urgent care clinics.

We're making it easier for parents to manage finances with 26 weeks of paid parental leave with super now included, as we saw today. So cost-of-living measures are part of Labor's long-term economic plan. We are helping all Australians right now by working to bring down inflation and planning a future made in Australia.

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