Julie-Ann Campbell (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Grey has said that action is more important. The question that I have for him is: what action did he take when that mother called him? What action did he take when his constituent said to him, 'I'm worried about the cost of living. I'm worried about the money that I'm paying when I'm at the bowser'. Did the member for Grey tell her that he was here fuelling the fire? Did the member for Grey tell her that he and his party are here taking political opportunity from a crisis, and that she is the ultimate victim of that irresponsibility? It is downright dangerous, and the member for Grey should reach out and let her know that when he gets home.

We know that people are doing it tough. They're doing it really tough. And, when you drive up to the servo, when you saddle up and pick up the pump, when you watch the numbers tick over as you're filling up, of course you are watching your hip pocket. We know that cost of living is the most important thing to Australians right now, and it's not limited to the bowser.

Australians are feeling it when it comes to their hip pocket and when it comes to housing and paying their rent. They're feeling it when they pay their bills; they're feeling it at the checkout. That's the landscape that our nation is in right now. When you couple that with a devastating conflict in the Middle East, we have to think how we approach this situation for the betterment of all Australians.

The opposition didn't ask themselves, 'How do we help Australians at a difficult time?' The opposition asked themselves, 'How do we drive fear?' The opposition asked themselves, 'How do we eke every single political opportunity out of this?' The opposition asked themselves, 'How do we exploit an international crisis for our own personal advantage?' I believe that when you sit on that green leather, you form a compact. It's a compact with the Australian people, and it's a compact of responsibility. It's a compact of a promise that you have to ensure that you are acting in the national interest. Today, with this MPI, that compact is in tatters. It's in tatters and it is in absolute stark contrast to the approach and the action that this Albanese Labor government has taken on such an important issue.

I want to take you through just three things when it comes to that approach. Firstly, we've secured an Australian based fuel reserve, a fuel reserve close to home, unlike what we saw from the now leader of the opposition, who thought that that fuel reserve should be in Texas. Now, if you're a Queenslander, you might think to yourself, 'Well, that's not too far away; Texas, Queensland is pretty close.' But it wasn't Texas, Queensland; it was Texas in the United States. On this side of the chamber, we believe that fuel reserves should be held here in this country. We believe, if you're a Queenslander, that there should be a bit of it in Brisbane too.

Secondly, we've bolstered the ACCC to stop gouging. We've increased the maximum penalties, we've extended their powers and we've allowed for on-the-spot fines to make sure that, unlike the opposition, others are not also taking advantage of a crisis in the Middle East.

Thirdly, we're working with experts, we're working with the Farmers Federation, we're working with truckies, we're working with stakeholders across the deck. What do they say? They say that when demand is up by 40 per cent because of pressure, we need responsible communication. We need to talk to the Australian people responsibly and we need to make sure that they understand that not only has that stockpile not been touched but fuel is arriving on time. There is one thing that is clear about this opposition: in relation to fuel, they are the villain.

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