Anne Stanley (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. What progress is the Albanese Labor government making in the fight against inflation? What obstacles are standing in the way?

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

I thank the member for Werriwa. I also want to acknowledge the great work that the assistant minister is doing when it comes to financial security. We heard about some of that a moment ago.

The cost of living is the major pressure on people in our communities, and it's the No. 1 focus of this Labor government. We're coming at this cost-of-living challenge from every conceivable, every responsible angle, whether it is tax cuts, energy bill relief, cheaper medicines, cheaper early childhood education, rent assistance, wage increases and the changes we're making to student debt.

We know that the official data doesn't always capture precisely how people are faring, but we have seen inflation come off really considerably in our economy. When we came to office it was much higher and rising, now it's lower and falling. It had a six in front of it under those opposite and it now has a two in front of it. Because of that, headline inflation is now back in the target band for the first time since 2021. As the secretary of the Treasury said yesterday, as I said yesterday, as the Governor of the Reserve Bank said today, the Reserve Bank targets headline inflation, but underlying inflation is important as well. Both headline and underlying inflation—

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

The Treasurer will pause. I'm not going to have the member for Hume continually giving commentary throughout this answer. It's just not on. We can't have this continual commentary, so make no more interjections for the remainder of this answer, and the House will be a lot better.

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

The member for Hume is desperately unhappy because both headline inflation and underlying inflation went down in the data last week, and it went down in the forecasts from the Reserve Bank this week. It has been—

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

The Manager of Opposition Business, on a point of order.

Government members interjecting—

Members on my right, the Manager of Opposition Business is entitled to raise a point of order, and I won't have this being disrupted.

Paul Fletcher (Bradfield, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Government Services and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The standing orders are very clear on imputations of improper motives. To suggest, as the Treasurer just did, that the shadow Treasurer is 'desperately unhappy' is to impute improper motives to him. This Treasurer does it all the time, and he should be required to comply with the standing orders.

Honourable members interjecting—

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

Order! The member for Groom! No, we're not giving commentary. We're going to listen to each other and show each other respect. The Deputy Leader of the House.

Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Happiness or unhappiness is not a motive, and I encourage the Manager of Opposition Business to have a look at the shadow Treasurer's face.

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

Order! We're going to handle it this way: for the remainder of the answer, I'm just going to require the Treasurer not to refer to other members at all—just get through the answer and not refer to any other members. I just want to listen to the Treasurer.

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

The point I'm making is that last week both headline inflation and underlying inflation went down, and, in the forecasts the Reserve Bank released this week, they have lowered their forecasts for both important measures of inflation. The fact that today marks one year exactly since interest rates last went up reflects the progress that we are making when it comes to inflation. This fight against inflation is our No. 1 focus, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank again acknowledged that today when she said—and I'm quoting—'I think the attitude at the moment that I'm hearing from government is the right one.' This is the same governor who said our surpluses are helping and our cost-of-living relief will help.

I say to those opposite: stop trying to diminish what Australians have achieved together in our economy under this Prime Minister and under his government: inflation halved, real wages growing again, a million new jobs, tax cuts for every taxpayer, two surpluses, and less debt. We're not yet there, but we have made a lot of welcome progress. We know that the opposition leader is a risk to this progress, because we know his record: gutting Medicare, pushing wages down and pushing prices up. These are the costs of his reckless arrogance. His reckless arrogance will have real costs for ordinary people who are doing it tough enough and would be doing it tougher without our help.