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

No wonder those opposite, when asked a question on Insiders or on the other Sunday programs, cannot say anything about what their policies are, what the costings are or what their alternative is as they go forward.

Tonight, we will hand down a budget that confirms the fact that inflation is going down. We inherited an inflation rate that had a six in front of it, and it was going up. It's now at 2.4, and it's going down. We inherited low wages, being a key feature of their economic architecture, and now wages have gone up five quarters in a row. We inherited legislated tax cuts that were aimed at all of us in this room, not the people we represent, and we changed it so every Australian got a tax payout. Those opposite said, 'We should go to an election,' last year as a result. What we have done—and you'll see more tonight—is provide cost-of-living relief, because we understand that Australians have been under pressure from global inflation. So that is why we have provided a range of cost-of-living measures, all of which have been opposed by those opposite.

We, of course, have had two rounds—and then we announced on Sunday that in the budget tonight there will be a third round—of energy relief. It's all opposed by those opposite, and they have the hide to talk about gas reservation from time to time. Well, part of the cap on gas and coal was about reservation—was about making sure that the manufacturing sector could have access to that gas. But they've just discovered it as well.

They opposed the cheaper medicines policy that we've put in place. They opposed every other measure, including cheaper child care. They opposed free TAFE and said, 'People don't value it because it's free.' Every single measure that has been put forward, they have opposed. They don't know what they're for; they only know what they're against. And what they have are secret cuts that they want to implement after the election. (Time expired)

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