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

I have received a letter from the honourable member for Hume proposing that a definite matter of public importance be submitted to the House for discussion, namely:

The Government's failure to manage its crippling cost of living crisis.

I call upon those honourable members who approve of the proposed discussion to rise in their places.

More than the number of members required by the standing orders having risen in their places—

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

Before I move to that critical matter, I've just a couple of brief words about my neighbour the member for Whitlam. We knew each other from before politics. We knew Julia as well before politics. Little did we know we were going to become neighbouring seats, but it has been a very civilised neighbouring relationship for the most part. I've enjoyed working with him on really critical issues across the region, including the 2019-20 bushfires, of course, and we share a passion, which might surprise some. That's a passion for the survival and the prosperity of the steelworks in the Illawarra and Port Kembla, because it was the first place I worked coming out of university and I think it's an incredibly important contributor to the region. Good on the member for Whitlam for the role he's played in the success of that important business, and thank you for your public service.

Three years ago—2022—seems like a long time ago now. It was the year Queen Elizabeth died and we were seeing COVID going backwards, which was a good thing, of course. It was the first year we saw large language models, with the emergence of OpenAI. It was on 2 May 2022 that I think a lot of Australians took notice of what the then Leader of the Opposition said, which was that life would be cheaper under Labor. That was almost three years ago; the anniversary is coming up. Labor and the Prime Minister at the time talked a very big game about lower electricity prices, cheaper mortgages et cetera. The sad reality, though, is that Australians have seen the exact opposite over the course of the last almost three years. Nothing is getting easier. Australians are paying more for their mortgages. Australians have paid $50,000 in after-tax income in additional costs on a typical mortgage since Labor came to power.

I was talking to one of my constituents the other day. Before Labor came to power, their mortgage repayments were $1,500 a week. Now, they're $4,000 a week. That's $30,000 a year in after-tax income that this small-business person has had to find. He and his wife run a small business in my electorate. They work incredibly hard. They're working extra hours to get by and to pay that mortgage. The stress on them is typical of the stress we're seeing on Australians right across this great country as they pay more for their energy. This guy makes pizzas and he uses a lot of gas. The price of gas has gone up by 34 per cent. Food is up 12 per cent. Rent is up 17 per cent. We know for a working family the cost of living is approaching an increase of 20 per cent, and incomes have not kept up with that. This is why we have seen the biggest hit to Australia's standard of living in our history. It's the biggest hit in our history, worse than for any of our peer countries. It's seen a bigger reduction than in any of our peer countries.

We also know that this government's own plan doesn't get us back to the standard of living Australians had in 2022, three years ago, until 2030. Right at the heart of this is Labor crowding out the private sector. We've seen record levels of insolvencies, but we are also seen record levels of government spending, over $350 billion of extra spending from Labor. And, yes, we opposed in this parliament over $100 billion for programs that have delivered nothing. They're not delivering the manufacturing we want to see and not delivering the houses we want to see.

If you're going to spend that kind of money then you have to find that kind of money. The way they are doing it, as we all know all too well, is by taxing Australians more. Australians are paying the highest level of personal income tax ever. The increase for Australians has been over 20 per cent since Labor came to power. Included in that is a tax grab from this Treasurer and this Prime Minister which they promised not to do. They promised not to touch franking credits. Well, they are going after franking credits. There is no doubt about that. They promised not to touch superannuation taxes. They are coming after that. We see that legislation coming through the parliament at the moment, and I will come back to that in a moment. They promised not to change negative gearing, but we know the Treasurer was working on a secret plan to come after negative gearing. Just today, the Prime Minister refused to rule out coming after negative gearing. He has been given so many opportunities. He laughs and carries on every time he is asked the question and never rules it out. He never has and I don't think he ever will, because we know that's exactly what he wants to do.

Australians know that on tax, Labor's word means absolutely nothing. In fact, we have seen new research just in the last little while from the Financial Services Council saying a staggering 73 per cent of Australians expect that Labor will make further changes to superannuation if they are re-elected—an extraordinary number. That is a complete loss of faith and trust in the stability of superannuation, which is so crucial to Australians' retirement. It's not hard to see why there's this lack of trust, because, as I said a moment ago, right now we've got new superannuation taxes going through this parliament. The Treasurer made a very ham-fisted effort today to explain why he was doing something that he promised he wouldn't do. They promised that they wouldn't come after superannuation. We know now that, according to Treasury's own analysis, a 20-year-old who earns an average wage throughout their life will have a superannuation balance higher than $3 million in their early 60s, and they will be hit by this new tax. Analysis of the ATO and census data reveals that that means that more than two million Australians under the age of 25 today will be hit by this additional tax to pay for Labor's addiction to spending.

But, worse still, part of this package is going after unrealised capital gains. Unrealised capital gains are unrealised. And, if you have to pay a tax, you have to pay it in cash, so you have to realise it. We know that the small-business people and farmers who have put land in their self-managed super funds will have to find a way to pay that tax when land is not going to give them liquidity they can draw on easily. So what's the answer? They're going to have to sell. They have to realise the unrealised capital gain. This is not rocket science, and it's why we haven't seen this kind of impost in the past. It's why we haven't seen this in countries across the world. But, in Australia, we've got a Treasurer who thinks this is a good idea.

You've got to remember that this was the brainchild of a Treasurer who has never worked in the private sector, unless you count 'six long months as Queensland general manager of a public relations firm'—six long months. That's a direct quote from the Treasurer's book Glory Daze, where he says how much he hated his six long months in the private sector, and he went straight back to what he's much happier with, which is lots of government. I'll save everybody the pain of reading Glory Daze,and I'll say this: there aren't many glorious days ahead of this lot on the other side of the parliament. I cannot recommend this book. I much preferred the member for Parramatta in the Quarterly Essay, where he advocated strongly for nuclear power. At least he's an economist, unlike the Treasurer.

But let's be honest about this tax. Labor's super tax is nothing more than an unindexed wealth tax. That will mean even fewer Australians will trust this government, this Labor Party, when it comes to the superannuation that they put away, hoping that it will be there for their retirement—that they think is their money, but that, sadly, this Treasurer and this government have decided is their own money.

There is a better way: getting this country back on track by beating inflation and boosting growth; through cheaper energy with a better mix of energy sources; through affordable homes, by breaking those infrastructure bottlenecks that we know are preventing the supply of extra homes in this country; by balancing immigration with the supply of housing; and by ensuring this country is getting back on track.

Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm very pleased to be speaking today about our cost-of-living measures and how important they are for all Australians. I want to start by talking about the situation when we came into government. We knew then, when we came into government, that inflation was high and rising, real wages were falling, living standards were declining and people were going backwards. That was the reality. But, under our responsible economic management over these past few years, we now see inflation is almost a third of what it was at the election and is falling, real wages are growing again, living standards are rising again and we've recorded the lowest average unemployment rate for any government in 50 years. We've also overseen the creation of more than 1.1 million jobs—the most jobs created on record in any parliamentary term. So our economic plan is all about helping Australians earn more and keep more of what they earn and addressing many of those cost-of-living pressures. Now, there are a whole range of them, and I'd like to run through them.

Certainly when I'm out in my electorate, door-knocking at listening posts, people raise how a lot of these measures have assisted them. Our tax cuts for every taxpayer—in my electorate that's over 70,000 people—have made a huge difference. As I said, we know people are doing it tough. That's why these measures are important. The energy bill relief for every household of $300 helps so many, particularly a lot of older Australians in my area on the New South Wales North Coast. Of course, our cheaper child care is so vitally important for families. Cheaper medicines are, again, so important for everyone, particularly older Australians. And what a game changer fee-free TAFE has been across the nation, as is reducing HECS debts. All of those measures are so vitally important. There are the wage increases for aged-care workers and childcare workers as well. I'm hearing every day from people in my area about what a difference they make.

Now, of course, all of these measures were opposed by the Liberals and Nationals, which is just appalling. I don't know how they, or their candidates, face people in their electorates when they're talking about the cost of living. Are they honest, and do they tell them that they actually opposed every one of our cost-of-living measures that are helping Australians every single day? What we do know about the Liberals and Nationals is that they have a lot of secret cuts and secret costs as well. We certainly hoped that we might hear about some of those today, but I don't know that we will. They don't seem to want to reveal too much of it. We know that the biggest threat to household budgets is indeed the cuts the Liberals and Nationals would make—about $7,200 for each household. It would be devastating.

What we do know is a little bit about the expenditure they want to have—the $600 billion on their nuclear power madness, which is just going to result in massive increases to power prices. I can tell you: people in my electorate are not interested in the Liberals and Nationals plan. We hear many times, and we heard today, about the $10 billion they want to spend on the long lunches for bosses. That's their absolute priority. What we don't hear about are the secret cuts.

We know there is that $350 billion they say they want to make in cuts. Well, what I'd like to know, and what people in my electorate and throughout the nation would like to know, is: Where are they coming from? Where are those cuts going to be? Will they be in age pensions? Will they be in Medicare? Will they be in veterans pensions? We'd all like to know. People are very concerned. Will there be further cuts to education? Will they be to fee-free TAFE? We know they've got form across the board for a lot of these cuts, and there's a real concern in the community when it comes to that—that that's exactly what they would see again with the Liberals and Nationals in government. As I said, in my electorate, it comes up all the time: Where will those cuts be? Will they be right across the board?

I mean, tax cuts are so vitally important. As I said, more than 70,000 people in my electorate have benefited from them. I know that across the country at least 600,000 people have been able to access fee-free TAFE—and, importantly, access to all of that education and access to jobs. It's so important to be training our workforce for the future. In my region 5,000 people will benefit. In a regional area, that is huge. Every day people tell me the difference that fee-free TAFE has made in their lives as well. Again, this was all opposed by the Liberals and Nationals.

The other issue that people raise with me are their concerns about when the opposition leader was the health minister. This is something that comes up all the time, because it's a pretty shambolic record when we have a look at it. We know that when the opposition leader was the health minister he froze Medicare rebates for years. It was incredibly damaging. Of course, he wanted to put that GP tax in place. I was here when he was talking about how important it was. My community certainly fought back in relation to that. Of course, he cut $50 billion from public hospitals. That was just horrendous right across the board. On top of all of that he said that there were too many free Medicare services. That's what he thinks. That's what the Liberals and Nationals think. They've got form when it comes to cutting Medicare and cutting health services.

Our government has worked extremely hard in rebuilding Medicare in terms of tripling the bulk-billing rate and putting a lot more funding into our public hospitals. It takes a long time. Ten years of cuts and neglect of our health system have been really devastating. But people remember that. People remember when the opposition leader was health minister. So there is going to be a very clear choice at the next election—a choice between building Australia's future with the Labor government and taking us backwards with the Liberals and Nationals. It's only going to be a vote for Labor that will stop the opposition leader from becoming prime minister and stop the Liberals and Nationals from getting into power. They will take us backwards and people will be worse off. We certainly know that that's the case.

When I'm out and about, talking and listening to the community, all these cost-of-living measures make such a big difference. We're also very proud, as a government and as MPs, of listening to our community about the concerns they have.

I would like to add this on one of my local issues that has been a very, very big concern and that we addressed last week. The Prime Minister was up in my electorate on the Friday, and we made a really important announcement—that the re-election of an Albanese Labor government would deliver $3 million for our North Coast crime prevention infrastructure action plan. It's really good to have that plan in place. Again, this is about listening to the community and about Labor governments addressing these concerns. We've seen increasing youth crime in our area, and of course the community are very, very concerned about that, as am I. As a former police officer, community safety is my top priority. Right across the area, people raise those concerns. I do note, of course, that the New South Wales government has been very proactive. We've had 17 new police recruits to our region. That government has recently brought in stronger youth offender bail laws, and also Jack's law, in terms of tackling knife crime. We always need to have a whole suite of measures. In this announcement that we made, there's a million dollars for each council—the Tweed, Ballina and Byron councils—to be able to install crime prevention infrastructure measures, whether it's CCTV, lighting or landscaping; the councils can make that decision.

I really want to thank all the community that advocated for this—particularly the Ballina mayor, Sharon Cadwallader. I also want to acknowledge Alison Vickery, who led the community group, and all those people who filled out my crime survey. I was very pleased to be announcing this commitment from a re-elected Albanese Labor government. It's about listening to the community and the concerns they have. We've done that, as we do every day in terms of listening to people in our region about addressing those cost-of-living measures.

Of course, on Sunday, we did see an incredibly good announcement in terms of our investment in women's health. That is such an important investment. It's really good work that's being done. There's the absolute strengthening of Medicare, with more than $570 million to deliver more choice, lower cost and better health care for women, and there's been a really positive response in my area. Look what it includes: the first PBS listing for new oral contraceptive pills in more than 30 years; more choice, lower costs and better access to long-term contraceptives; larger Medicare payments and more bulk-billing for IUDs and birth-control implants, saving around 300,000 women a year up to $400 in out-of-pocket costs; more Medicare support for women experiencing menopause; and the first PBS listing for new menopausal hormone therapies in over 20 years. This has been incredibly important for women right across the nation.

As part of that package, too, there'll be more endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics treating more conditions, and also contraceptives and treatment for uncomplicated UTIs directly from pharmacies—another great initiative. Again, this is about Labor listening to the community, acting on the concerns that the community have and delivering real reforms. This one is certainly needed, and I know there's been a really positive response right across the country in terms of our investment in women's health.

We're really proud to keep delivering all of our cost-of-living relief. It has made a huge difference. Certainly, it is only Labor that will take Australia forwards. Voting for the Liberals and Nationals just takes us backwards, and we know that that's exactly what they would do, because they opposed every single one of our cost-of-living measures that are so vitally important at this time.

Jenny Ware (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the government's failure to manage its crippling cost-of-living crisis. I thank the honourable member for Hume for bringing this matter of public importance to this place.

Labor cannot manage the economy. We have said so many times in this place. My parents have actually said to me, after about six months of Labor, 'We didn't think that we would ever have a government that spent and mismanaged the economy the way that Gough Whitlam did,' but we've got it here. We have seen it in all of the numbers. We have seen inflation far too high for far too long.

The Treasurer says things like, 'Inflation is coming down,' but I have not met anyone in the electorate of Hughes who has said to me that they now feel that their grocery prices are any less. They don't feel that their insurances are any less. They don't feel that their sports registration fees are any less. They don't feel that their fuel is any less. Certainly their mortgages are no less, because, with 12 interest rate rises under this Labor government, people in my electorate have paid more than $50,000 in additional interest payments over what they were paying under the former coalition government.

What has fuelled this inflation rate is $347 billion in additional spending. Labor sit there and say that spending has gone to better TAFE services, for example—actually, they don't say it's better TAFE services; they say it's fee-free. Free TAFE. But what is the use of throwing money at supposedly free TAFE when only about 50 per cent of students that start at TAFE are finishing? Why not give students the opportunity to also attend a private vocational education training service? It's because underlying all of Labor's philosophy and thinking is centralising control—centralising control even of the VET sector. We have seen no assistance whatsoever for any apprentices who wish to avail themselves of private training.

We've also heard that a lot of this spending has gone on Medicare. I'm glad I have the opportunity yet again to speak about this government's absolute failure on health. Today in question time I asked the minister, Minister Butler: '27,000 small businesses have collapsed under this government. How many GP clinics have closed in that time?' He had to take it on notice. The minister had to take it on notice. Why does he, as the minister for health, not have that figure to hand?

Government Member:

A government member interjecting—

Jenny Ware (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I note that members over there are interjecting, but we've also heard announcements about women's health. Let me tell you what this government has delivered for the women in my electorate since being elected: absolutely nothing. They told me about it in Engadine on Saturday. I had a number of women come up to me and say that we need endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics. I'm in southern and south-western Sydney. Our nearest pelvic pain clinic is down in the Southern Highlands. I have written to the minister about this and said, 'We need one in southern Sydney to service the women in Hughes and adjoining electorates such as Cook,' and I have been refused that request. Also, on menopause clinics, there's been no assistance whatsoever from this government for the women in my electorate who are battling with menopause.

This government has totally failed on some of the very key issues that it should be addressing. Thank you.

Dan Repacholi (Hunter, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Albanese Labor government is focused on reducing the cost of living. This is one of the issues that matters most to the hardworking people of the Hunter. Today we have the opposition trying to convince us that they could do a better job. Let's be clear, when it comes to reducing the cost of living, the coalition is like a chocolate teapot—they melt under pressure, deliver nothing and leave nothing but a mess. They are worse than useless. They seriously expect us to believe they of all people could do a better job of reducing the cost of living—the same mob who spent nine years driving up power prices, keeping wages low and making it hard to see a bulk-billing doctor. They talk the big talk, but there is no action to back it up. They voted no to every single cost-of-living measure we have put in place.

Leading the charge is the member for Hume. The member for Hume has absolutely no idea of what to do when it comes to the cost of living. Remember, this is the same bloke who hid energy price hikes before the last election. He saw the numbers and didn't like them, so he shoved them in the draw and hoped no-one noticed. Now he wants us to believe he has a grand plan to help struggling families with the cost of living. Get real, mate! It's like putting a fox in charge of the chicken coop and being surprised when the feathers start to fly.

If you really want to understand the member for Hume and what Australians think of him, you don't have to look any further than his own Facebook page. This is the man who is so starved of support that he once replied to his own Facebook post with, 'Fantastic. Great move. Well done, Angus.' I mean, come on! Even his own supporters aren't willing to pat him on the back, so he had to do it himself.

Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Member for Hunter, I need to interrupt you. This has been happening a lot this week. When you are referring to a current sitting member of this House, you have to use their titles.

Dan Repacholi (Hunter, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No worries. Sorry, Deputy Speaker. If self-congratulation was an Olympic sport, he would take home the gold every time. If only he put as much effort into passing cost-of-living relief for this parliament as he does patting himself on the back.

While the opposition reply to their own social media posts and plays silly games, we've been getting on delivering real cost-of-living relief. Let's talk about what we've done for the Hunter. More bulk-billing and better health care has made it easier to see a doctor without breaking the bank. We have delivered Medicare urgent care clinics so people in the Hunter can now get urgent medical attention at no cost, and two Medicare mental health clinics so people can get the mental health support that they need. There's been energy bill relief for thousands of households and small businesses across the Hunter. Hunter residents have already saved $7.7 million thanks to our reduced cost of medicine. Over 6,700 families in the Hunter are benefiting from cheaper child care, making it easier for parents to work and support their families. Just this week, we announced the $573 million investment into women's health, making contraceptives and menopause treatments more affordable.

These aren't just numbers on a page. This is real relief. These are real savings that are making a difference in real people's lives. And what does the opposition have to offer? Nothing. They voted no to our cost-of-living relief, no to tax cuts, no to better wages, no to cheaper child care, no to cheaper medicines, and no to lower power bills. The reality is if the coalition were in charge right now things would be worse off. There would be no energy bill relief. There would be less bulk-billing, and Medicare would be on its knees. The cost of medicines and cheaper child care would go spiralling out of control. There'd be no tax cuts. We're in government because Australians wanted the adults back in charge.

We know times are tough and that is why we are focused on easing pressures wherever we can. While the opposition just talks about helping Australians, we actually deliver. We will keep fighting for the people of the Hunter and people of Australia. We'll keep driving down costs. We'll keep making life easier for families, pensioners, small business owners and workers. To those opposite who think they can do better, we've seen your record. Australians know better. We know that there's going to be $350 billion in cuts. We just don't know where because those opposite refused to tell us. I think Australians deserve better. They should know where these cuts are coming from. We know they need to find $600 billion to fund their nuclear experiment that they think we're ready for. We know all of this is coming from an opposition who really don't know how to give us or Australians any information.

The only person who believes the shadow Treasurer can bring down the cost of living is the one-man cheer squad himself. Thank you to the member for Hume for supporting yourself because you seem to be the only one that does. Let's get Australia going again.

Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Much as I like the member for Hunter, and appreciated his attempted comedy routine, it did nothing to support hard-working Australian families who are struggling every day with the cost-of-living crisis that the member for Hunter and the government opposite have presided over for the past nearly three years.

I might remind the member for Hunter of a few figures that may be worthwhile for the member for Hunter's consideration. Health costs are up some 10 per cent. Education costs are up 11 per cent. Food is up over 12 per cent. Housing is up 14 per cent. Rents are up over 17 per cent. Insurance costs are up over 18 per cent, and, very importantly, electricity costs are up over 32 per cent.

It doesn't matter how the member for Hunter wants to cut the mustard; electricity was up 32 per cent even before the rebates, and it is having a material negative impact on the cost of living not just for everyday Australians but for our small businesses and businesses right across this country. I know many businesses whose electricity costs have increased by far more than 32 per cent under this government—some in the order of 200 per cent. Some of these are charities and other community organisations that take the scarce resources they receive in donations and grants and put them back into the community, and they are now less able to do that purely because of the cost of electricity. It is also then meaning that the cost for businesses to do business and keep their doors open—our cafes, clubs and pubs—is tough. The cost inputs to business through electricity alone are magnified through every single part of the supply chain. Everything we do has electricity somewhere in it.

The member for Hunter, in his contribution, referenced child care. I can say to the member for Hunter that a number of childcare centres I've spoken to in my electorate have decided it's too difficult to deal with the government's bureaucracy and red tape for the new childcare subsidy provisions—but they are giving their employees a 15 per cent increase anyway, which I think is terrific. But they're also increasing their fees. The Australian families in my electorate of Forde who are using child care are not paying any less for child care than they did two or three years ago; they are paying more because the government's red tape and regulation around the childcare subsidy is too difficult for some of these childcare centres to deal with. It is just another example of the failure of those opposite.

I've addressed child care and energy, and I will address bulk-billing. Those opposite in the government have been waxing lyrical about bulk-billing rates for the past week or so. The Minister for Health and Aged Care has tried to use the COVID pandemic as some sort of shield and cover for where the bulk-billing figures are at, so let's go back before COVID and have a like-for-like comparison. In 2019, bulk-billing in my electorate of Forde was at 96 per cent. What is it today? Eighty-four per cent—a 12 per cent drop in bulk-billing across my electorate of Forde.

The government can wax lyrical all they like about addressing cost-of-living issues, but the reality of the matter is that it is not making a material difference to what families across my electorate are feeling each and every day. And I haven't even got to the 12 interest rate increases, which, for an average mortgage in my electorate, are resulting in an additional $50,000 of interest being paid by mortgage holders across my electorate. In addition, investors who own rental properties are also paying those additional costs, which is why rent has gone up. The government is failing to deliver, and only the coalition will get the country back on track.

Joanne Ryan (Lalor, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's a pleasure to join my colleagues today for this matter of public importance because the cost of living is a critical issue across the country, a critical issue in my community and a critical issue in the electorate of Lalor. I appreciate following the Chief Opposition Whip, who spent his first two minutes on a list of how much things had increased in cost—none of which I'm in a position to refute. But I ask the question, after seeing this big long list from those opposite about increases to costs for households: why did they vote against every cost-of-living measure introduced by this government to support families across the nation? That's the question. Why do they know how much everything has gone up by but choose not to act and support people so they can pay those bills? That's the ultimate question.

We know that we've worked hard on this side. We know there's still work to be done. We know people are still hurting. But we've made substantial progress on inflation. Wages are growing again, unemployment is low and we've seen the creation of 1.1 million jobs in one term of government, four out of five of which are in the private sector. These are things that Australians need to understand. They need to understand the hard work that's happened and some of the positive results from that. Average unemployment, under this Albanese government, is lower than under any other government of the past 50 years. We have unemployment at four per cent. Some would argue that that's full employment. It's the first time in 50 years that Australia has had unemployment at four per cent or better at the same time as inflation has been below three per cent. This is the soft landing that we would hope for and that economists would hope for. This is a Labor soft landing, because it is being done without driving unemployment. Inflation has come down without people across the country losing their jobs. Inflation has come down while we've grown jobs. Inflation has come down while we've grown people's pay packets, with increases to the minimum wage and with a 15 per cent pay rise for care economy workers.

These are important things. They're really important in my community. And those opposite have voted against them. They've voted against supporting students. They voted against tax cuts for all Australians. Can you believe that? They voted against it. They voted against the energy rebate. They voted against cheaper child care. They voted against cheaper medicines. Let's face it—I heard it said today that perhaps they don't want to see interest rate cuts happen. Perhaps that's not what they want, because they seem to like that Australians are in pain.

Let me tell you that we've heard a lot today too, and a lot across this week, about the $600 billion nuclear fantasy that they want to fund through taxpayer dollars. They're not talking about private investment here; they're talking about money from the Australian public's pockets. We've heard about the $350 billion of cuts they're going to find—their conjecture, not mine. They've said they're going to cut $350 billion. The latest thought bubble is the $10 billion for bosses' lunches, paid for by the taxpayer. There is no such thing as a free lunch—everybody in the world knows that—but those opposite think that the Australian taxpayer, on top of the pain they're in, should pay for these things. Not only are they pretty much a policy-free vacuum; they're certainly a costings-free vacuum, given how long it took them to tell us how much the nuclear fantasy was going to cost.

I came in in 2013. I remember former prime minister Tony Abbott preaching, the night before the election—no cuts to health, no cuts to education, no cuts to the SBS or ABC, no cuts to pensions. I was here while they endeavoured to cut them all. Every single measure was on the chopping block in that cruel 2014 budget. So those opposite have form and Australians are awake to them. They know they will undo funding to schools and funding to hospitals just like they've done in the past.

Sam Birrell (Nicholls, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is a cost-of-living crisis. It is crippling. Those of us who move around our electorates and talk to families know that it is crippling. The government has failed to manage it. There are a number of different topics we could discuss in relation to the cost of living. I'll pick three: energy, mortgages and rents, and food. I will also say that the cost-of-living crisis is crippling and that, if Labor stay in power, it will get worse, and I will explain why.

First, energy. People were conned during the election campaign. They were told that electricity prices were going to be reduced by $275. Now, that was a huge promise during the election campaign. Who knows but there is probably a lot of people out there who believe the Prime Minister when he said it 97 times and, therefore, cast that ballot accordingly. Where does the $275 come from? It comes from modelling by a company called RepuTex, and the government has relied on that modelling to deliver this promise. I just want to quote to you what Aidan Morrison, who is the director of the energy program at the Centre for Independent Studies, said about this. He said the $275 by 2025 number is the 'absolute laughing stock' of the policy debate in Australia—the absolute laughing stock! Not only that but what he says makes us think it might get worse. He says its twin, its sibling—and he is referring to the integrated system plan—has no better analysis behind it than the same people and the same report has been elevated to become the cornerstone of our most important planning document in relation to energy. So that makes me worry that the energy crisis is going to get worse if this is what we are relying on, and there are certainly a lot of problems with the integrated system plan. The Prime Minister has to go out during this election campaign and explain why the $275 hasn't happened and what the new promise is. I would be interested to see what that is.

On mortgages and rents, the government's failure to manage inflation has meant that interest rates have stayed too high for too long. That has affected people with mortgages and it has affected people who rent properties. Core inflation is still outside the target band—still. The Treasurer gets up during question time and says it is falling. It stayed so high for so long. Just calculate what that has meant for those extra mortgage repayments over that period of time. Why has inflation stayed so high for so long, and a lot higher in Australia than comparable economies? It is because of excessive government spending. If you are going to spend, it has to be productive spending. For this government, a lot of the spending is not productive, and the state governments, particularly the one in the state where I live in Victoria, have to own a bit of that, too. It is not only spending but also the complete lack of focus on productivity. Now, when you have people who are in government who don't really understand private enterprise because of very few of them have worked in it, they probably don't understand productivity, and we've seen that play out.

The third thing I want to talk about his food. Traditionally, food has been pretty cheap in Australia. Why is that? Well, we have a great climate for growing food. We have also traditionally given farmers the tools they need to grow food. It has traditionally been a country that is small business friendly, and a lot of farms are small businesses. We have given farmers the tools they need, such as irrigation water, to grow produce such as fruit, dairy, vegetables. This government is taking those tools away. That has not only led to a crisis in confidence in investment but it is also going to get worse and is going to lead to families having to pay more at the check-out, because if you make it harder to run a farming business, prices of produce go up. What happens is people have to put their prices up or they say, 'This is too hard and I'm not farming any more.' Therefore, there are fewer people producing and there is less food. If there is less food then the laws of supply and demand say the prices are going to be higher. So families are feeling the pain of Labor's attack on agriculture at the supermarket check-out, and that is one of the key examples of this government's failure to manage the cost-of-living crisis.

Cassandra Fernando (Holt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I find it absolutely laughable that the shadow Treasurer would stand in this chamber and try to lecture us on cost of living. This is the same opposition that will talk about anything—flags, foreign wars, manufactured outrage—but won't outline a single policy that will actually help families in my community. The Liberals have had plenty of time to come up with a credible plan but what have they done instead? They have tried to distract Australians with culture wars. They have voted against cost-of-living relief at every opportunity. They have spent more time fighting among themselves than fighting for Australians doing it tough.

When Labor came into government, we inherited a mess. Wages had been deliberately kept low for a decade under the Liberals as a part of their so-called economic plan. Inflation had a six in front of it, and it was climbing, and the public service had been gutted. Thousands of essential jobs were outsourced to overpaid consultants, draining billions from the economy. This is the economic disaster the Liberals left behind. Since being elected, we have been working day in, day out, to address the cost of living for families, and our plan is working. Inflation has fallen from 2.4 per cent and is trending down. We have created more than 1.1 million jobs, with four out of five in the private sector, and unemployment is at the lowest average for any government in 50 years. Not only have we cleaned up the economic disaster left behind by the Liberals; we have also been rebuilding our health system, strengthening our education system and delivering targeted, responsible cost-of-living relief for communities like mine in Melbourne's outer south-eastern suburbs.

Unlike the Liberals, we understand what families in Holt and across Australia are going through. That's why Labor has delivered a tax cut for every single taxpayer, wage increases for the first time in a decade, $300 in Commonwealth energy bill relief, cheaper child care, $3 billion wiped off student debt, pay rises for aged care and early childhood educators, fee-free TAFE and cheaper medicines. Every single one of these measures is making a real difference for families in communities like mine, and every single one of these measures has been opposed by the Leader of the Opposition. The Shadow Treasurer wants to lecture us on cost-of-living relief. He should take a long hard look in the mirror, because the only time the Liberals have shown any interest in cost-of-living relief is when it benefits their wealthy mates.

Now I may have misspoken earlier when I said that the Liberals had no cost-of-living relief policy. They have one. Let me walk you through it. Imagine that you are a CEO of a big company, it's lunchtime, and you are feeling a little bit peckish and want to order lobster, caviar or steak tartare. Under the Liberals' cost-of-living plan, you can—all on the taxpayer's dime. This is what the Liberals call helping Australians. It's not lower power bills, fairer wages or making life easier for families but just perks for big businesses while working Australians are left to fend for themselves. I'm not sure which genius in the opposition came up with this plan or at which Gina Rinehart funded luncheon it was cooked up, but, while the Liberals hand tax cuts to the wealthy and luxurious lunches to big businesses, Labor is delivering real relief for working Australians.

The contrast couldn't be clearer. Higher wages and tax cuts under Labor, or lower wages and budget cuts under the Liberals. Labor is delivering for everyday Australians. The Liberals are only delivering for their mates in big businesses. We know that Australians are doing it tough, and that's why our government will keep working hard here in Canberra for communities like mine.

Simon Kennedy (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

After listening to the government speakers, it's clear that this is a government that has stopped listening. It oscillates, whipsawing, between telling us how good Australians have it, how good unemployment is—if you listen to the Chief Government Whip over there—how good wages are, how good it is that inflation is coming down. Then it whipsaws to say, 'Oh no, we're listening on cost of living.' The truth is that after two years of not listening on cost of living, after two years of divisive social policies, after two years of pushing everything else, they are now burning the furniture in a late attempt to try and say that they are listening on the cost of living. They are saying, 'We'll throw out energy subsidies; we'll subsidise everything,' unless it's a sustainable way to bring down energy costs like we are proposing with nuclear energy.

This government has failed Middle Australia. The school year is starting, and I recently heard a story in my electorate from a mother who was cutting expenses around the house and struggling with bills and even cutting their grocery bills. But the one thing she was hoping not to cut was the amount of food she put in her child's lunchbox, and she wasn't. These are the real faces of bad decisions made by a bad government on cost of living.

Across the board, people are hurting and families are reeling from prices going up. The average Aussie has had their mortgage go up by $50,000. These government decisions have seen prices increase across the board. At the check-out aisles you are paying up to 12 per cent more. If you own your own house, you're paying 14 per cent more. If you are renting, guess what? It's worse. You're paying 17 per cent more. Electricity is up 32 per cent after the government subsidy. Gas is up 34 per cent. In Cook, my local electorate, unfortunately things are not looking good for my constituents, with 54.4 per cent of households saying they are financially stressed. If there is financial stress in Cook, there are parts of the rest of Australia that are doing it even tougher, w3ith 31.5 per cent of households experiencing mortgage stress and 83.4 per cent of those renting experiencing rental stress.

The employee living cost index gives us an idea of what's happening to Middle Australia, those who are being employed by others. It's up 19.4 per cent since Labor came to power. If you are a hardworking family out there, that is what you are paying more. That is almost 50 per cent more than what CPI has gone up. So CPI is not the right measure. If you're an employee out there slogging it out, you have had double the increase of what CPI tells you and that is how you know you are poorer. That's why Australian families feel so much poorer. That's why for the last 21 months Australia has been in a per capita recession. What does that technical economic jargon mean? It means, for two years, you and your family have been getting poorer. It means, for two years, the average disposable income you have has gone down. This is the first time in Australia's living history that that has ever happened over that period of time. That's under this Labor government's watch.

What have the Labor Party in government done to cause this? They've spent an additional $347 billion—$30,000 per household—since the election. I can tell you that the households of Cook do not feel $30,000 better off. They would have much preferred that $30,000 to go into their pockets, to have cost-of-living relief through lower taxes and less government spending. Over the past two years, these policies have seen Australia have the biggest fall in living standards in the developed world. Australia has gone from the top of the pack to the bottom of the pack. The Reserve Bank governor, Michele Bullock, has been under increasing pressure from this government and says the Treasurer is 'fully aware of the inflationary implications of his own policies'. The International Monetary Fund is projecting that in 2025 Australia will have the second-highest inflation in the developed world, the largest fall in disposable income in the developed world and the second-highest inflation, just after the Slovak Republic.

After 12 interest rates under Labor, we now have the highest interest rate since 2011. Respected economics firm Deloitte released figures showing Australia's standard of living will not recover until 2030. The damage wreaked by those on the other side has taken three years. It's going to take us six years just to get back on track. Australia has had enough.

Alison Byrnes (Cunningham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Here we go again—another MPI and another lie by those opposite. Whilst concern about cost-of-living relief has underpinned every step our government has taken, the 'no-alition' has run in the opposite direction at a rate of knots. They have opposed every single cost-of-living measure on this floor, and that's an absolute shame for the Australian people. When we came into government, we saw portfolio after portfolio decimated under a decade of neglect by those opposite. It was an absolute bin fire. But we rolled up our sleeves and we started cleaning up their mess. Australian families were faced with the rising cost of living, stagnant wages and increasing prices for essentials like housing, child care and energy, and they weren't doing anything to address it for 10 long years. Under the Leader of the Opposition—who, don't forget, holds the title of the worst health minister in 40 years as voted by Australian doctors—we saw bulk-billing rates absolutely plummet. With our government's record investments into Medicare, we have seen an additional six million bulk-billed visits between November 2023 and December 2024.

In Cunningham, we have seen a 4.5 per cent increase to the bulk billing rate for the same period, equating to 63,356 bulk-billed appointments. The Albanese Labor government has also made medicines cheaper, saving Cunningham residents over $8 million by cutting the cost of medicines, lowering the safety net threshold and legislating 60-day prescriptions. On Sunday, the Minister for Health and Aged Care announced that we are investing a further $573.3 million to deliver more choice, lower costs and better health care for women. This includes things like better access to long-term contraceptives, larger Medicare payments and more bulk-billing for IUDs and birth control implants, saving around 300,000 women a year up to $400 in out-of-pocket costs.

The good news in health just keeps on coming. Last week, the Prime Minister and health minister announced an additional $1.7 billion to fund public hospitals and health services next year. This is an extra $407 million for New South Wales to help cut waiting lists, reducing wait times in emergency rooms and managing ramping. We're also funding and opening 87 Medicare urgent care clinics, including in Corrimal and Dapto in the Illawarra, so Australians can walk in and get urgent, bulk-billed care seven days a week without their credit card. This is in stark contrast to the opposition leader, who cut more than $50 billion from public hospitals. That's not all. He's already slated massive cuts to our Public Service and institutions, people that are there to help the public get the services that they need. But he will not tell us exactly where he's going to cut those jobs until after the election. If he were a hairdresser, he'd work at Just Cuts.

On this side of the House, we are focused on helping Australians with the cost of living, providing much-needed relief, and there is a lot more to do. History shows that when Labor is in government, we invest in people and we build for the future. We have built things like the NDIS, the NBN, superannuation, paid parental leave, Medicare and the list goes on. Under Prime Minister Albanese, we are continuing this tradition of investing in the future for all Australians. From 1 July 2024, every Australian received a tax cut to put more money back in their pockets, and for the third year in a row, wages are rising, with over 2.6 million Australians receiving a pay increase. We are providing $300 in energy bill relief for every household and $325 for eligible small businesses.

To support students and our future workforce, we have made significant reforms to the HECS system and, if re-elected, we will include a 20 per cent reduction in student debt. This is massive—raising the repayment threshold from $54,000 up to $67,000, and lowering repayment rates. We've introduced a Commonwealth Prac Payment to support students undertaking mandatory prac placements in essential fields, such as teaching, nursing, midwifery and social work, because we know that students have been doing it tough for too long. We've also committed to making fee-free TAFE permanent, creating 100,000 fee-free TAFE places every year if re-elected. In Cunningham alone, we have seen over 5,000 Illawarra students enrolling in fee-free TAFE courses.

Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The discussion has concluded.