Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

As we approach the one-year anniversary of the Albanese government, it is worth this chamber taking the time to debate the extraordinary list of broken promises that have been racked up and the denial of them that is occurring on the other side. Time and again, we have sought to get the government to respond directly to their promise that they would reduce household electricity prices by $275. During the course of this week we actually asked them to acknowledge direct quotes out of their own policy document. They won't acknowledge it. We've even handed the document across the chamber with the quote highlighted. They still wouldn't acknowledge it. We even asked Senator Farrell yesterday just to say the words 'two hundred and seventy-five dollars'. He could not say them. He would not say them.

They will not admit that on more than 97 occasions before Australians cast their votes they went out and promised power price reductions of $275. And then the day after the election, and not once since have they been willing to repeat that promise. Not on one single day have any of you been game to repeat that promise—nor has Prime Minister Albanese—because you knew you never had an intention of delivering it. You knew it would never happen. It was a broken promise from the moment you made it, just like your promises not to change superannuation taxes, just like your promises not to change franking credits. They're all broken promises from a government that has demonstrated just how inept it is, how committed to breaking its promises it is and, as a result, how much the Australian people are feeling the pain from a government showing so early how out of touch it is. (Time expired)