Slade Brockman (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Well, you belled the cat, didn't you, Senator Walsh? You really belled the cat when you talked about how it was 5.04 and you were finally talking about the cost of living, because what it is to this government is a political afterthought. It's the thing you get to once you've wasted two hours trying to amend a very reasonable motion from the opposition about Israel's right to defend itself—a motion that I'm very surprised anyone in this place would have questioned. Instead, the Labor Party, because of their own internal problems, have had to spend two hours trying to move an amendment to that motion. Then you come in here at five o'clock, when we finally get to take note of answers and, as an afterthought—like this government always treats the standard of living and the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on real Australians as an afterthought—you start to talk about that now.

This government has completely failed to address the cost-of-living crisis. Its budgets have poured money into the economy, which every senior economist across Australia has said is inflationary. Labor close their eyes, block their ears, hold their nose and say, 'Oh, no. Our budget is putting downward pressure on inflation.' That is absolute nonsense, and no serious economist in the country has said that they think that your budgets are putting pressure on inflation, and it is inflation that is the standard-of-living killer in any economy. It is inflation that is making people poorer.

In the West Australian a few days ago, an article revealed that just one rate rise this year, a 25-basis-point rate rise, will wipe out the tax cut. That's it. Senator Smith, remind me: how many increases in interest rates have we had under this government? Is it 11, or are we up to 12?