Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We know many working families are doing it tough right now. That's why the Albanese government has invested $23 billion in relieving the cost-of-living pressures, including through our Energy Price Relief Plan, which has reduced electricity prices by around 25 percentage points compared to forecasts. That's hundreds of dollars each family in this country has saved. The Leader of the Opposition voted against it. Mr Dutton also voted against record investment in affordable housing. Then there's fee-free TAFE, which has been taken up by 300,000 people and which the opposition said was a waste of money. There's the increased minimum wage, which the opposition refused to support. There's the $40 per fortnight increase to JobSeeker, which we introduced, but Mr Dutton's opposition voted against it. Then there's the government's record investment in bulk-billing—the largest in Medicare's 40-year history. Compare that to Mr Dutton, who, as Minister for Health, froze the Medicare rebate for six years and wrecked bulk-billing rates. In fact, as health minister, Mr Dutton said there were 'too many free Medicare services'. He tried to introduce a tax on every visit of every person to a GP. Not only has Mr Dutton opposed cheaper energy bills, more affordable housing, increases to wages, increases to JobSeeker and fee-free TAFE; he is fundamentally opposed to free public health care. Delivering cost-of-living relief should be above politics in this place. It's a shame Mr Dutton refuses to care about anyone other than himself.