Carina Garland (Chisholm, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. How will tonight's budget continue the work of building Australia's future, and are there any other approaches?

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

I thank the member for Chisholm for her question. Tonight, the Treasurer will hand down his fourth budget, and it's a budget that invests in building Australia's future, a budget that helps every Australian with the cost of living, which remains our top priority. Because of the hard work that we have done, the Australian people, our economy is turning the corner. Inflation is down. Wages are up. Unemployment is low. Interest rates have started to fall. And we've achieved this the Australian way—looking after each other, working together, not copying from other countries but investing in the things that work for us. Tonight's budget will deliver new cost-of-living relief to every Australian in every part of the country. Every household and business will receive another $150 off their power bills. Tonight's budget makes a record investment in education.

We know that, when those opposite came to office in 2013, their first budget ripped $50 billion out of health and $30 billion out of public education. Yesterday, I announced our schools funding agreement with Queensland Premier David Crisafulli. This brings every single premier and chief minister to the table, to make sure that every Australian child can have the resources that they deserve so they can fulfil their potential, so they can be not left behind. It's a really important reform of which we are very proud.

Tonight's budget strengthens Medicare and increases urgent care clinics. Instead of the 50 that we promised, we've delivered 87, and we're going to deliver another 50 on top of that. On top of that we have the $1.7 billion we've produced for increased hospital spending in the next year. On top of that, of course, is our cheaper medicines policy. Now, we will make medicines even cheaper—just $25, the same price that they were way back in 2004.

This year, Australians will face a very clear choice: Labor's plan to keep building or Peter Dutton's promise to cut everything. We know that the Leader of the Opposition has a record of gutting Medicare, and we know he has a plan to do it again. If you want to know what people will do, have a look at their track record. We know he's got to find $600 billion for nuclear reactors somewhere. When he cuts, the Australian people pay. The test for his budget reply is whether he comes clean on what he's going to cut to pay for his reactors.