David Batt (Hinkler, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the member for Page, who today provides the House with the important fact that this government's betrayal of Australians due to higher energy costs and other cost-of-living pressures is out of control. Only late last year, I hosted the Deputy Leader of the Nationals in my electorate of Hinkler, one of the lowest socioeconomic regions of this country, and he was able to see firsthand that Labor's mismanagement is hitting Hinkler hard.

As of late 2025, the average weekly rent for houses in Hervey Bay was sitting between $625 and $650. That's a super tight, high-demand market with vacancy rates below one per cent. I recently toured the ever-expanding Hervey Bay Neighbourhood Centre with CEO Tanya Stevenson and committee member Bernard Whebell. The organisation develops and delivers programs and services in response to community needs, and one of the most pressing is the need to support vulnerable people who are feeling the immense squeeze of Labor's cost-of-living crisis. When power prices rise and keep rising under Labor, this impacts the wellbeing of our community, and organisations like the neighbourhood centre step up and are busier than ever. A drop in transport access for the elderly means a loss of connection and not attending medical appointments.

Demand for emergency relief is skyrocketing. The neighbourhood centre's Comfort Kitchen usually serves 80 meals every Wednesday night. It's now around 120, and the growth area, sadly, is in children's meals. More people are coming in for help with housing support, but there's very little left to provide. This week, I also heard from the Salvos in Bundaberg, where Captain Chris Millard described a 20 per cent rise in demand at Christmas time. More people need food and essentials than ever before. This growing list of essential needs is simply too expensive under this government. Labor has presided over the biggest collapse in living standards in the developed world while fuelling an addiction to spending that is driving up the cost of living today and leaving a $1.2 trillion debt bomb for the next generation. Under Labor, we have experienced the largest decline in living standards in the developed world.

Mortgages are up by an average of $1,800 a month after 12 rate rises. Labor's spending has blown out from 24 to 27 per cent of GDP, the highest level outside of a recession in nearly 40 years. Every minute, we are paying $50,000, or $72 million a day, just in interest on Labor's debt. Every dollar that pays interest is a dollar we can't spend on aged care, on Medicare, on schools, on hospitals or on tax relief. We cannot put unsustainable spending on the national credit card for our kids to pay back tomorrow through Labor's higher taxes. After nearly four years of Labor, Australians are paying more for everything. Insurance is up by 39 per cent, energy is up by 38 per cent, rent is up by 22 per cent, health care is up by 18 per cent, education is up by 17 per cent and food is up by 16 per cent.

When I return home over the coming weeks, I will be asked, 'What will the coalition do about this mess?' We'll take the pressure off families, fix the budget and keep Australians safe. We will start by cutting income tax and easing cost-of-living pressures. We'll get the budget under control and stop the waste. We'll introduce affordable energy and responsible emissions reduction. Importantly, we must keep Australians safe at home and secure our borders. It's in our DNA to keep backing small business, growing the economy and creating jobs. We'll cut red tape, support enterprise and get more Aussies into work.

The Nationals have led the plan for a cheaper, better and fairer future, with regional Australia at the heart of this sensible policy. Our energy and climate plan is to lower prices first by amending the rules to prioritise the lowest energy prices, to do our fair share by aligning ourselves with comparable nations and to create a fair go for all by scrapping senseless carbon taxes and reducing the regions' heavy burdens. Empowering local solutions, we'll support the local initiatives on the ground that make a positive environmental difference, and we'll support all technology. It's not just about ruling out renewables but about having a sensible approach and a sensible mix. For protecting our security, we must prioritise defence, our critical minerals and our food and fuel security.

The Salvos in Bundy and the neighbourhood centre in Hervey Bay, like many service providers, are going to need more support to deliver and answer the constant calls for food, shelter and general expenses. It's about the weekly shop, the monthly power bill, the rent and the mortgage. This is Labor's cost-of-living crisis. Labor spends, prices rise and Australians pay.

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