Varun Ghosh (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

This matter of public importance is one more indication that there is something rotten at the heart of the coalition's economic thinking. That thinking ignores the overall downward trajectory of inflation in this country and claims to care about cost-of-living pressures while shaping up to cut relief to households around the country.

In the RBA's monetary policy decision statement in August, there was an acknowledgement that there is significant uncertainty in the overseas outlook and Australia's own economic outlook. In August, Dr Hunter from the RBA told the Senate Select Committee on the Cost of Living that there was unevenness in sectors of the Australian economy—that some sectors were seeing growth in jobs and output, and some sectors were lagging. An analysis of a diverse and complex economy like Australia's requires nuanced consideration of where we have been, where we are and where we are going. When you look at some of the figures the RBA has released and you consider the government's cost-of-living measures and the opposition's own statements that they intend to cut those cost-of-living measures, the superficial and cynical nature of this MPI emerges vividly.

I speak first of inflation. Headline inflation when the Albanese government took office was 6.1 per cent, and it then peaked at 7.8 per cent in December 2022. It is now 3.8 per cent. It is trending downwards. Overall, as Dr Hunter, the assistant governor of the RBA, told the Senate select committee in August:

… Inflation has obviously moderated quite significantly over the last almost two years—a year and a half or so …

There was a slight uptick in inflation between March and June, from 3.6 to 3.8 per cent, but the overall trend during the time of this government, from its peak in December 2022, has been down. The enthusiasm with which the merchants of gloom on the opposition benches jumped on that slight uptick in inflation, ignoring the broader trends, to talk the Australian economy down reflects their cynicism and reflects that they put their own political fortunes above the future of the Australian economy and the Australian people. That uptick in inflation may have suited the coalition's political purposes, but the overall trend doesn't suit their narrative. The Statement on monetary policy released by the Reserve Bank in August forecast that underlying inflation will return to target fractionally later, in the midpoint in 2026, rather than in late 2025. The Albanese government's economic plan is focused on fighting inflation and bringing inflation back to band, without crunching the economy—that is, responsibly reducing inflation while also easing cost-of-living pressures.

The second topic I'll speak on is wages growth. From the latest figures in the RBA's key economic indicators, wages growth was 4.1 per cent to June 2024, and wages have grown by four per cent in the previous four quarters. My colleague Senator Smith from across the aisle said that Australians are worried about job security. While the labour market is tight and may, or is projected to, begin easing, it's a little bit hard to take seriously those opposite on questions of job security when, as recently as Sunday, Senator Hume from the Liberal Party indicated that the coalition's priority in IR is flexibility—and flexibility in this context is code for less security in jobs. Increasing wages is one way that household costs can be met in this country. We know that cost-of-living pressures are most acute for those who are on the downside of advantage or are lower paid workers. From 1 July this year, with the support of the government's submission, there was a 3.75 per cent increase in the national minimum wage and the minimum award wage. Some 2.6 million low-paid workers got their third consecutive pay rise, backed by the submissions of this government. Since Labor came to government the minimum wage in this country has increased by $110 per week. That relieves financial pressures of people at the lowest end.

The third topic I'll talk about is cost-of-living measures. From 1 July 2024 every Australian got a tax cut. That's 13.6 million Australians. They received a tax cut of around $1,800. In Western Australia the average tax cut was closer to $2,000. That's real cost-of-living relief, as is energy bill relief—$300 for every Australian household, and $325 to more than one million small businesses around the country. The Liberal and National parties have recently indicated that they're not committed to those cost-of-living measures and will consider cutting some $315 billion worth of programs that the government has implemented.