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

My question is to the Prime Minister. Prime Minister, what economic conditions did the government inherit, and in what ways is the Albanese Labor government bringing costs down and lifting wages for Australians?

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

I thank the member for Lingiari for her question. Australians know that inflation is a global challenge and that the surge in energy prices and supply chain issues has affected people and economies worldwide. It's no secret that we inherited some tough circumstances—$1 trillion in debt, wages going backwards, productivity flatlining and inflation with a 'six' in front of it and rising. But we have had a clear plan and we have stuck to it—bringing costs down, getting wages up and getting inflation back to where it should be.

Today, we have made even more progress. Monthly inflation remained at 2.1 per cent compared with the 'six' it had in front of it when we took office. But we are also bringing costs down. Today, we are introducing a bill to ensure that supermarkets face multimillion-dollar penalties for harmful breaches of the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct, with fines of up to $10 million for price gouging. These are serious penalties, the highest corporate penalties under any industry code. That's because people trying hard to find good prices don't deserve to be ripped off. Shoppers deserve fair prices, not dodgy discounts. Day to day, unfair prices make life hard. Over the course of a year, they really add up. That's why we're cracking down on supermarkets and making sure that the regulators have the teeth that they need to make sure that supermarkets are doing the right thing.

But we are also concerned with getting wages up. Last night, through the Senate, we passed a 15 per cent pay increase for early childhood workers. Importantly, it's tied to keeping fees down for families.

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

Not real wages.

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

Real wages are going up.

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

Order! The Treasurer and the member for Hume can easily take their conversation outside, and I can assist with that if they really want. When there are answers, just restrain yourselves, because I want to hear what the Prime Minister is saying.

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

The truth is that those opposite really lose it when you speak about paying workers properly. Whether it's aged-care workers, early educators or people on the minimum wage, whenever you speak about rising wages—and we have had real wages increase for four quarters in a row—they start yelling and shouting because they don't like it. We know that early educators shape lives and change lives. We need to do more than just thank them. We need to make sure they are properly valued and fairly paid. This is a win for workers, a win for families and a win for our littlest Australians as well. This government is turning promises into progress. (Time expired)