Ralph Babet (Victoria, United Australia Party) Share this | Hansard source

As a member of generation Y, I often hear older generations reflecting on the late 1980s and home loan interest rates of 18 per cent. I have no doubt that those were very tough times, but following 10 consecutive interest rate rises, excessive money printing and government debt accumulation we now live in even tougher times.

The reason is quite simple: short-sighted government intervention that only stimulates the demand side of the equation. It has resulted in households which are overburdened with debt. It's an unsustainable reality of modern society. Economics reporter Stephen Johnson recently wrote that a rich Australian, in the top 3.6 per cent of earners and bringing in $180,000 a year, is in more mortgage stress than an average income borrower who bought a typical home in 1989. I urge the Treasurer to acknowledge that the government's spending drives inflation and to put the brakes on now. We just can't take it anymore: stop spending money! (Time expired)