Scott Buchholz (Wright, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You just can't trust Labor in this country anymore. Most people today are actually worse off as a result of Labor's budget. The low and middle income tax offset is gone, so, if you were relying on that as a tax refund this year, kiss it goodbye. Ladies and gentlemen, I can tell you that on 200 occasions before coming to government there was a promise by Labor of a $275 tax credit to your electricity bill. No-one in my electorate of Wright has seen that $275. In fact, energy prices have gone through the roof. They've gone up so much that those on the government side have offered a $300 tax incentive for electricity payments. But, really, with the cost of electricity going up the way that it is, it needs to be more like $1,000 to stay on track.

Labor said that we'd be better off under a Labor government. If you're a mortgage holder, your mortgages have gone up on no less than 12 occasions. If your mortgage is tied and you've got renters, that then ties to an increase in rent. The Reserve Bank, through its monetary policy, has had two feet on the brakes trying to slow the economy down, while this government has slammed over $300 billion worth of stimulus payments into the economy, which most economic commentators around the country have alluded to as a bad idea. You cannot trust this government.