Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Well, 'modest' seems to be the word of this week, and let me tell you: I certainly agree that Labor have much to be modest about—in fact, embarrassed about—in relation to their broken promises. They might not think that modest changes matter, but on this side we absolutely know they do. There is nothing modest about their broken promises, particularly in relation to superannuation. It was modest because it only relates to a small percentage of hardworking Australians. What did they say? Zero point five per cent? But guess what: it was actually 10 per cent, and I wouldn't be surprised if it actually turns out to be much more than 10 per cent of hardworking Australians.

Who are these hardworking Australians? They are the people who have worked hard all their lives to earn their money and to put money into superannuation. They are farmers, veterans on defined benefit schemes and many other Australians. There is nothing modest about what you are proposing to do to them. Anyway, even if it were modest and not a broken promise, why are you doing this? Why are you taking people's money away from them and from their retirement if it is so modest? It does not make sense.

Let's call a spade a spade: this 'modest' proposal is actually a broken promise. No matter how much they try to say 'modest, modest, modest', every time the Australian people hear the Labor Party say that it means 'broken promise' and it means they are raiding their superannuation. Australians are very smart and wise people. They know their super is their money. It is not the government's money. It is not the unions' money. It is not super fund money. It is their own money the government are taking from them, despite promising before the election they would not.

Let's have a look at what Labor actually promised every hardworking Australian in this nation. Before the election, Jim Chalmers, now the Treasurer, promised there were going to be no new tax increases; he said those exact words. Labor has broken that promise. Labor has said it will now double taxes on super. You really have to ask what will be next. Once you've broken one promise, many others will come. They are clearly being so duplicitous, and, frankly, are lying to the Australian people when they come here and say: 'Oh, we just had this little idea here. It's modest, it's reasonable. We said we wouldn't do this before the election, but, hey, it's modest. Let's just do it anyway, and take people's money away from them.'

In the last three weeks alone, not only has the Prime Minister refused to rule out further changes to superannuation—again, they said they would make none; the Treasurer has refused to rule out changes to negative gearing. The Treasurer also refused to rule out changes to capital gains tax, including imposition on the family home. Then the Prime Minister rushed out and said: 'Oh, the Treasurer shouldn't have said that. No, we won't touch your house.' But that is still not saying you won't make changes to capital gains tax. Then the Treasurer said, 'Whoops, sorry, I guess the Prime Minister is right.' Clearly, the Prime Minister of this nation and the Treasurer of this nation cannot be trusted, whatever they say, particularly in regard to what they said before the last election.

Those of us who are old enough to remember previous Labor governments will know this is socialism 101. It is the politics of envy. It is the politics of division. They start taking from people who have worked hard and have bigger bank balances, bigger incomes and bigger superannuation, and then they keep widening and widening and widening so that so many working Australians who have worked hard for their money do not have it anymore.

What else have this government done? Since this government came into power less than a year ago, they have had nine consecutive interest rate rises, which is putting profound stress on all Australians who have a mortgage. It's looking pretty grim out there, and everywhere I go people are saying how much this Labor government has negatively impacted on their cost of living. Sadly, there will be more cost-of-living pressures brought on by this Labor government.

Question agreed to.