Dean Smith (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury) Share this | Hansard source

Twenty-four hours after the budget, Labor is waving the white flag. They have surrendered on the fight to combat inflation, they have surrendered on their promises to generate wage growth, they have surrendered on providing cost-of-living relief to Australian families and they have surrendered on low unemployment—because the budget papers show 150,000 job losses over the forward estimates. What audacity, for the finance minister to say at question time that the government keeps all of its promises. The promise to keep inflation under control, the promise to keep employment low, the promise to provide cost-of-living relief—gone or disappearing.

Why is it that the Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, can spend much of his commentary before the budget, in his budget speech and following his budget delivery, talking about the need to combat inflation but has not taken one hard decision? He's not taken one hard decision to combat the scourge of inflation that is now bearing down on Australian families. As the weeks and months progress, Australian families are going to have to face the very real economic challenges that no hard decisions have been taken by this government in its first budget—perhaps better characterised as a mini-statement or economic statement—to combat inflation. My colleague, Senator Cadell, from New South Wales—