Paul Scarr (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Multicultural Engagement) Share this | Hansard source

I want to first respond to Senator O'Neill's point with respect to the $300 household electricity rebate. I want to quote from something an outstanding Australian sent me. This is an Australian who does a lot of things for his community, and I am privileged to call him a very close friend. This is what he sent me in the aftermath of the budget: 'Why give everyone $300? They should give that money to those most in need.'

That underlines the issue that we have in relation to the household electricity relief. I am going to get the same money as someone who is, say, 21 years old—renting, trying to buy a new house and trying to get ahead. I'm going to get the same benefit of the $300 as that person who needs it more than me. There's something inequitable about that, especially at this point in time when people are struggling. That's the objection that Senator Cash was raising with respect to the equity of that $300 payment.

It's even worse in Queensland, because the state government is doing exactly the same thing. I'm getting money from the state government and I'm also getting it from the federal government, so there's a compounding effect. I don't know if the Treasurer was inspired by the Queensland government in that regard, but there is that compounding effect.

Those listening to this debate have heard from the senators, the politicians. I want to quote to you what the economists, the experts, say about this budget. This is what Assistant Professor of Economics Steven Hamilton said about the budget. This is not a politician; he's a professor of economics. 'This is the most irresponsible budget in recent memory. The government set itself a simple standard: not to make the Reserve Bank's job harder. Michele Bullock, the Governor of the Reserve Bank, may just choke on her cornflakes.' That's what Assistant Professor of Economics Stephen Hamilton said. I don't know if Michele Bullock eats cornflakes or Weet-Bix or what she has for breakfast. But there is a lot of truth in that statement from that professor of economics.

This is what HSBC's chief economist, Paul Bloxham, said about the budget—again, not a politician but an expert economist: 'Indeed, core inflation is likely to be higher in a world with the subsidies than one without.' These are the subsidies which are being handed out hand over fist by this government as part of $315 billion of additional spending. He said, 'There is a growing risk that rates remain higher for even longer.'

We know that the cash rate target rate at the moment is 4.35 per cent. The quarterly inflation rate is 3.6 per cent. The Reserve Bank, in its last announcement, actually raised the fear that inflation is likely to remain higher and is falling more gradually than expected. That's what the Reserve Bank said before this budget. Then after that statement we have an inflationary budget. So that is bad news for interest rates. It's bad news for those struggling to make mortgage payments. This is the wrong budget for the current times.

Now I want to quote Chris Richardson, a well regarded economist. This is what he said before the budget:

If the government wants to do something about the cost of living, then more than anything else it wants something to be done about inflation.

So, if you want to do something about the cost of living, you need to do something about inflation. That's what he said before the budget. This is what he said last night after the budget:

So my big ask of the budget was that it would not poke the inflationary bear.

I don't think it passed that test.

That is what expert economists are saying about the budget, not senators and not MPs—not people belonging to political parties with their narratives. This is what the expert economists are saying. This is bad news for the Australian people, because, as at this point in time, the average household with a mortgage is $35,000 a year worse off because of those interest rates. That's the impact of those interest rates. And if you're renting—we're facing net overseas migration over a five-year period of 1.67 million people, and in the context of housing construction rates—