Alice Jordan-Baird (Gorton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I want to thank the Leader of the Opposition for this fantastic opportunity to talk about the important measures the Albanese Labor government has taken to ease the cost of living for families right around the country. We have spent this entire term in government focused on the needs of the Australian community, delivering for all Australians.

The Liberals and the Nationals—the 'no-alition'—on the other hand have spent their entire time in opposition focused on themselves and their own political infighting. If those opposite want to talk about failure, they should be focusing on the failure of their own coalition. There have been so many break-ups, reshuffles, get-back-togethers and will-they-won't-theys that I'm not even sure who's on the front bench any more. Seriously, I cannot handle another seating plan. If the new season of Married at First Sighttanks, channel 9 has some new material to draw from right across this chamber.

Those opposite want to talk about Labor's cost-of-living relief. Sure—I'd be more than happy to oblige. The Albanese Labor government is delivering real cost-of-living relief for all Australians. As the member for Gorton, I've spoken to many members of my community about the cost of living—young people struggling to get into the housing market, people on pensions struggling to make ends meet when they pay their bills, a generation saddled with student debt. People are doing it tough; there's no doubt about that.

That's exactly why we've introduced the five per cent deposit scheme and expanded eligibility to all first home buyers, so more people can break into the housing market. In my own electorate of Gorton, Labor's expanded home guarantee scheme has meant more than 1,800 people have been able to buy their first home. That's real change for real families. And we're building more homes. In Labor's last term in government, we built 500,000 homes, and we're delivering more than 21,000 new social and affordable homes right across the country through round 3 of the Housing Australia Future Fund, its largest round yet.

There's no doubt today is a tough day for mortgage holders. It's why we've cut student debt by 20 per cent. It's why we've given every Australian household energy bill relief. It's why we've added more medicines to the PBS and capped costs for PBS listed medicines at $25. It's why we've increased the LISTO and raised the eligibility threshold to give low-income workers a superannuation boost. It's why we've delivered a tax cut for every Australian and will deliver a further tax cut this year and another one next year. Then there's the three-day childcare guarantee, paid prac and the biggest ever investment in Medicare so people can see a GP for free. And then there's free TAFE. It's actually free TAFE's third birthday. That's three years of free vocational education and training for Australians—something that unlocks doors and something that I know well. Thanks to free TAFE, my husband, Chris, can retrain to become a sparky. All this comes alongside our most recent announcement of $25 billion to state and territory governments for public hospitals as part of a landmark agreement.

I could go on, but the point is that this is not reckless spending. These are real cost-of-living measures that are making a difference to household budgets around the country, real cost-of-living measures that those opposite consistently voted against. Tell that to the families in Melbourne's western suburbs. Tell that to my community. We are listening to communities like mine, and we are responding. Meanwhile, by the way, we're appropriately managing inflation. When Labor came to government in 2022, the inflation rate had a six in front of it—a six. Now it's got a three in front of it. We've had two budget surpluses, and we've used those to pay down debt. Compared to what we inherited, wages are up and unemployment is low.

To be clear, those opposite call this reckless spending, yet they can't string together a reasonable policy agenda. They're inconsistent. They struggle to find a coherent position to scrutinise the government from. Last month brought us a clear example. They insisted we recall parliament early. Fine. Done. Then, when we recalled parliament early, they told us it was rushed. There is no consistent position in the 'no-alition', and it's no wonder because, looking over there at the Libs and way over there at the Nats, right now, I can't see a coalition at all—and I'm wearing my contact lenses today! Their inconsistency on key issues and their failure to form a functioning opposition is not helping Australians. This motion is not government scrutiny; it's a thinly veiled attempt to distract from their own political infighting and, quite frankly, it's just not working. I thank the House.

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