Kara Cook (Bonner, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

This budget delivers for Queensland and for my community of Bonner. It delivers cost-of-living relief, stronger health care, more housing and a more resilient economy for the future. Queensland will receive $42.3 billion in Commonwealth funding. This budget is taking real pressure off Queenslanders with tax cuts for working Australians, including a new $1,000 instant tax deduction and a $250 working Australians tax offset. That means more money back in people's pockets when they need it most. This budget is also focused on boosting housing supply—$2 billion through the new Local Infrastructure Fund to help deliver the roads, water and essential infrastructure needed to unlock more homes. For Queensland, that means access to more than $395 million in funding.

When it comes to health care, we are investing $1.8 billion to make Medicare urgent care clinics permanent, providing certainty for Queensland's network of 25 clinics, including the two clinics that service my community in Bonner, with over 8,000 people already seen. Bulk-billing is increasing, with 663 fully bulk-billed practices in Queensland, and the number in Bonner has doubled. This is a budget focused on helping Queenslanders now while building a stronger future for our state.

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