Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Will the Prime Minister update the House on how the government's childcare and energy policies are helping to reduce cost-of-living pressures and support household budgets, including for constituents in my electorate of Robertson?

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for her question. She understands very well the cost-of-living pressures on the constituents in her electorate—on the families in Robertson. Everything we are doing—every element of our agenda—is focused on ensuring that we relieve that pressure of the cost of living on the families in her electorate and every other member's electorate, and that we provide greater opportunities for the jobs, businesses, children, grandchildren and their parents in that electorate and every other electorate. We know that their future depends on strong economic management. That means reforms have to be paid for and that means that reforms have to be well targeted.

A moment ago, I talked about the benefits for low-income families from our childcare reforms. I can go on and say we are also abolishing the $7,500 rebate cap. That is a cliff that forces many families to choose between working fewer hours or facing higher childcare bills. That is again another relevant, significant reform that will enable more families, and more mums and dads to work more hours—absolutely vital for productivity. That is what we are delivering. Labor has no alternative childcare plan at all, no proposal to pay for it at all. There was no competition on child care in the election, just a long complaint from the Labor Party.

When it comes to the cost of electricity, which has more than doubled in the last decade, what we have seen is a complete failure of policy on behalf of Labor, a massive ideological renewable energy target with no means to pay for it—

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Sydney is warned.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and no plan to provide the storage or the backup that would enable more renewables into the network. We have seen exactly what happens with that type of ideological approach to energy policy and it is in South Australia, with that huge wind resource of which Jay Weatherill was so proud—which can provide more than 100 per cent of the state's electricity but then, a few hours later, provides absolutely nothing at all. There is no plan for storage there, nothing at all. So what do they have? They have what the Leader of the Opposition promises the rest of Australia—the least reliable and the most expensive electricity.

What have we done? Snowy Hydro 2.0, the biggest renewable supporting storage plan in the southern hemisphere. That is our commitment: to get on with the job of storage in South Australia, storage in the snowies. We have got the plan, we have got the vision and we have got the means to deliver. (Time expired)

Ms Burney interjecting—

Mr Hunt interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Barton and the Minister for the Environment and Energy will cease interjecting.