Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) | Hansard source

Nothing darkens their mood like another fall in inflation, and that's what we saw in the figures today. For the second consecutive month we saw inflation go down in our economy, which is terribly inconvenient to those opposite but a welcome outcome nonetheless.

There are inflationary pressures in our economy, and they're made worse by the war in the Middle East, and this is a point that was endorsed by the shadow Treasurer on social media this morning. The shadow Treasurer, in agreeing that there are inflationary pressures out there—and obviously we're not complacent about the inflationary pressures that are still in our economy—conceded on social media today that the war in the Middle East has made our inflation challenge worse. I'm told that he agreed with that on social media today.

But, more than that, in his typically helpful way, the shadow Treasurer pointed out on social media this morning that inflation has come down substantially, and he attributes that to the budget settings. I'm not saying he does that deliberately; he does it accidentally. But he says that the war in Iran has pushed up inflation in our economy. He points out that it has come down substantially; that's also true. And, in his usual ham-fisted way, he attributes that to my budget settings. I'm not sure if that was the point he was trying to make, but it is very kind of him nonetheless. I appreciate him every day but particularly today, for making that point.

The second point I'd make is that if the shadow Treasurer wants to conflate inflationary pressures in our economy—

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