Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Today we've seen a ninth consecutive interest rate rise which will cause further pain for families with a mortgage. Can the Prime Minister confirm that the last time the cash rate was this high was when Labor was last in government? Why do Australians always pay more under Labor?

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's disappointing but not especially surprising to learn from a rare question from the shadow Treasurer that it hasn't dawned on him that interest rates started going up on their watch. The first interest rate rise of this cycle was in May last year, when they were still in government.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No regulation!

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Minister for Climate Change and Energy will cease interjecting.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

More than that, the worst quarter for inflation last year was the March quarter.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Riverina will cease interjecting.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In a difficult year for inflation, which was 7.8 per cent in 2022, the biggest contribution in quarterly terms was the March quarter, when those opposite were in office.

When it comes to the cost of living and the additional pressure placed on Australians and on the Australian economy by higher interest rates, one of the most important things we can do as a government is to clean up the mess that the member for Hume left of our energy markets. Question after question from those opposite about people who are doing it tough in this community ignore a very basic fact that, when we asked the parliament to help people out and make their electricity bills a bit cheaper, they voted against it.

Honourable members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The House will come to order. Members will cease interjecting so I can hear from the member for Hume on a point of order.

Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Relevance. Australians want to know why their interest rates always go—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Resume your seat. That is not a point of order. Because of the member's seniority, he won't be dealt with in the same way as the member for Petrie. If you want to state a point of order, you do it shortly. You do not add additional comments. I hope that is very clear to the House. I give the call to the Treasurer.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sometimes I wonder if the Rhodes committee have asked for their money back!

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will get on with his answer.

Honourable members interjecting—

Order! I will get the Manager of Opposition Business to resume his seat. I'll deal with this. I want the Treasurer to withdraw that comment and move on with his answer.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Withdrawn.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will cease interjecting.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To explain it to the shadow Treasurer, one of the reasons we have higher interest rates, which began before the election, is we have an inflation challenge in our economy, which we've acknowledged, and we've got a plan to address it. One of the reasons we've got that inflation challenge is the combination of the member for Hume's incompetence and President Vladimir Putin's aggression in Ukraine, which means we've got high and rising energy prices. The point I'm making about that is: when the parliament was given the opportunity to look after Australians facing high energy prices as part of this inflation challenge which is pushing up interest rates, those opposite were nowhere to be found. The difference between this side of the House and that side of the House is we see cost-of-living pressures impacting on Australians, impacting on small business and impacting on our economy, and we do something about it. Those opposite just vote against it. If they had their way, we'd have another decade of wage suppression and wage stagnation and ordinary working people copping it in the neck. We understand this inflation problem in our economy. We understand the pressure that rising interest rates put on Australian families and the Australian economy more broadly. We've got a plan to deal with it, and part of that means cleaning up the mess that the member for Hume left us.