Paul Fletcher (Bradfield, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Government Services and the Digital Economy) Share this | Hansard source

r FLETCHER (—) (): Yesterday saw the 10th successive increase in interest rates. The cash rate is now 3.6 per cent compared to 0.35 per cent when the current government came to office, and, of course, the rate that most Australians are paying on their mortgage is much higher than that. On a typical mortgage the impact of the cumulative increases that we've seen since this government came to power is around $1,700 a month, around $20,000 a year.

Now, who could forget that the Prime Minister promised Australians—not on the fly, not just in response to an unprepared question, but at Labor's campaign launch on 1 May 2022 he promised that the Labor Party, if they came to government, would deliver cheaper mortgages. He said Labor had real, lasting plans to do so. And, of course, earlier in his career, when the current Prime Minister was merely the member for Grayndler, he was very quick to hold the then government responsible, saying that there were 10 interest rate increases in a row which have cost Australian families on an average mortgage some $400 every month. He said, 'This is Costello's $400 charge on average Australians every month.' That is the principle that the then Prime Minister articulated earlier in his career. You could not find a clearer statement that the government of the day is, in the view of the member for Grayndler, accountable for interest rates.

These rising interest rates are hitting households, hitting Australian families very hard indeed. The latest national accounts showed that interest paid on mortgages grew by 23 per cent in the December quarter. Of those 10 interest rate rises, nine have been on this government's watch. This is the highest number of consecutive increases in interest rates in more than 30 years.

We have a government which is not doing enough to support the Reserve Bank and make its job easier. More than 800,000 Australian households will be moved off fixed mortgage rates onto variable rates this year, which will put even more pressure on already tight budgets as interest rates climb sharply. With no economic plan from this government, the Reserve Bank is being left to do all the heavy lifting, and, without such a plan, hardworking Australian families and struggling businesses will pay the biggest price.

In question time yesterday we offered the Prime Minister the opportunity to respond, to explain—to put in context, should he choose—the commitment that he made at Labor's campaign launch in May 2022: 'Labor has real, lasting plans for cheaper mortgages.' But did the Prime Minister take that opportunity? He did not. He could not turn away more quickly.

These interest rate rises are having a very grave impact on the cost of living of ordinary Australians, because it simply means there is less money left to pay for all of the other essentials of life: food, support for their children and all of the other things that families need to pay for. Don't take my word for it; there's a long list of respected Australian organisations who are making this observation. Lifeline Australia says, 'Our centres are reporting an increase in help seekers who have never experienced financial stress before.' Foodbank says:

These are often double-income households, or sometimes households with adults working two jobs … All the expenses in their lives are increasing faster than their incomes.

Suicide Prevention Australia says, 'We're deeply concerned about the impact that cost of living is having on Australians.' And St Vincent de Paul Society says, 'Unemployment is rising; real wages are plummeting,' and wages are at an all-time low, so this latest increase is a real blow.

The fact is that more people than ever are seeking help from charitable groups to put food on the table. There are so many Australians who've had no choice but to take on a second job to be able to pay the bills. According to research from Roy Morgan, an estimated 1.19 million mortgage holders—that's almost a quarter of mortgage holders—were at risk of mortgage stress in the three months to January 2023. Canstar research showed that 54 per cent of Australians are losing confidence in the government to ease cost-of-living pressures. Its research also revealed that one in 10 mortgage holders and renters report having missed at least one repayment or bill payment since rates started rising in April 2022. So this is very, very serious.

Not only have we seen the direct impact on households of this relentless rise in interest rates; we've also seen that many other aspects of Labor's supposed plan have turned out to be complete fizzers. Before the election, the Australian people were told that Labor would deliver a $275 cut in the power bills of Australians. They weren't told that once or five times or 10 times—

Opposition members: How many?

They were told 97 times. And how many times since the election has the Prime Minister used that number, $275, in the parliament? Has it been 10?

Opposition members: No.

Has it been five?

Opposition members: No.

A government member: I'd go zero.

It's been zero! It's been zero times since this government came to power that the Prime Minister has been willing to repeat in this parliament a promise he made on 97 occasions: that the power prices of Australians would go down by $275. The reason for that is obvious, because, far from going down, power prices are going up for Australians all around this country. For households, for families and for businesses power prices are going up.

He called parliament back in December last year. Apparently, this was going to be the big solution.

Indeed, the Prime Minister went on Radio National on 12 December. He said he had 'worked out a way that will actually be deflationary by reducing people's power prices next year'. Well, where are these Australians to be found, these lucky Australians who have received this reduction in power prices from this deflationary reduction in power prices that the Prime Minister told Australians and told Radio National on 12 December that they were going to be getting? Not only had his first plan failed, his second plan is not having the claimed impact.

When the Prime Minister says that it is going to be deflationary, that we are going to reduce people's power bills next year, tell that to Ross and Cynthia—age pensioners who live in the member for Cowper's electorate. This week they were told by their energy provider that their new power bill is about to skyrocket by more than 40 per cent to $474 per quarter. Or tell that to Ian Mortlock in the member for Mallee's electorate. For 20 years he has operated a tomato growing business under this government. His company endured a 400 per cent rise in gas prices for his last gas contract. He has been quoted a new price but, despite the much-hyped price caps, it is still so high that it will damage his business. Or tell that to small business owner Kieran, who runs the Hutch and Co cafe in Lilydale in the member for Casey's electorate. Kieran is bracing for his power bill to increase this year by $2,438.

So, far from getting power prices down, this government is presiding over sharp increases in power prices, and what is the Treasurer doing about this—the man whose job is to deal with these problems? He is writing 6,000-word essays. He is making excuses. In fact, if you closely study his essay, he has not one but five excuses as to why the economy might go bad on his watch: No. 1—war in Europe; No. 2—if China recovers from COVID; No. 3—recessions in the northern hemisphere; No. 4—when and how rate rises will bite; and No. 5—future natural disasters. He has every excuse covered. Not for the Treasurer the boring old 'the dog ate my homework'; he has five separate excuses. We have seen his hands-off attitude time after time, every time mortgage interest rates have risen.

The Treasurer is not just a passive observer; he is the Treasurer. The Treasury reports to him. He appoints the board of the Reserve Bank. He keeps saying 'the independent Reserve Bank' but he appoints the board. It is his job to fix this stuff. These kinds of excuses we are hearing from the Treasurer, it is as if the ship's captain were to write in his log, 'If we hit the log, it will be the obvious consequence of the man at the wheel failing to steer around from it.' Like the exasperated coast guard official who screamed at the captain of the Italian ocean liner the Costa Concordia, we want to scream at the Treasurer, 'Get back on the bridge and take charge.'

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