Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

Neoliberalism is built on conning people and basically lying to people about what's possible, what's not possible, what has to happen and what can't happen. One of the great lies of neoliberalism is that the Reserve Bank of Australia is an independent body. We hear it from the media, the opposition, the commentariat and the government—and, boy, did we hear it on high repeat from Treasurer Jim Chalmers today at his press conference. It's funny how we hear it more and more from the agents of neoliberalism, like Mr Chalmers, on days when the RBA jacks up interest rates, as it did today.

A simple perusal of the Reserve Bank Act—in particular section 11 of that act—makes it clear that the government has the power to override the Reserve Bank when it puts up interest rates. The problem that we've got is not that the power to override the RBA doesn't exist but that the agents of neoliberalism, including Mr Chalmers today, are too gutless to use it. Not only is Mr Chalmers too gutless to use that power; he wants to give it away. And the Liberals and Nationals are going to support him to give that power away. Colleagues, in a democracy the buck should stop with elected representatives, not unelected technocrats like the board of the RBA—the high priests of neoliberalism in this country. Today's interest rate rises are Labor's interest rate rises because Mr Chalmers has the power to override the RBA but he's too gutless to use it.

Today's RBA decision is a terrible decision that will cause massive hardship to renters and mortgage holders across the country, and push millions of Australians further into poverty and economic hardship. It is beyond belief that the RBA would raise rates even though, as they said in their statement today, they acknowledge that inflation has peaked and is coming down. It also beggars belief that Treasurer Jim Chalmers would sit on his hands and allow that to happen.

Average Australians did not cause this inflation crisis and they shouldn't be punished to solve it. Inflation figures are being driven by things that are out of the control of the RBA and the Australian government, like petrol prices internationally, as well as things that are within the control of the Australian government, like corporate price gouging. Labor has got to step in.