Wyatt Roy (Longman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 20 August 2010, the day before the election, the Prime Minister categorically ruled out the introduction of the carbon tax. The front page of the Australian on that day quoted the Prime Minister as saying:

I rule out a carbon tax.

Since the election, circumstances have not changed for my constituents. My electorate comprises what is commonly known as the mortgage belt of outer Brisbane. Many of my constituents are struggling to make ends meet in the face of increasing cost-of-living pressures. The price of water has gone up. The price of electricity has gone up. The price of fuel has gone up. The cost of public transport has gone up.

It is getting harder and harder for ordinary Australians to make ends meet. Ordinary Australians are having to work harder and harder to achieve the aspirations we had previously taken for granted. Owning your own home, paying the bills, educating your children and setting them up for a better life than your own—these are not unreasonable expectations, but under this government they are becoming more and more unattainable.

Now the government is proposing to introduce yet another new tax that will add to the cost-of-living pressures experienced by my constituents. Already high electricity bills will get higher. The New South Wales government has stated that a carbon tax would mean a 25 per cent increase in electricity prices. The locals in my community simply cannot afford that. Since the Prime Minister’s announcement, my electorate office has been swamped with emails and calls opposing the tax and expressing disappointment at the Prime Minister’s fundamental breach of faith with Australians. One of my constituents wrote:

My parents are finding it hard to pay for power as it is … with other rises … a carbon tax will kill them. This country can not handle more taxes.

Another constituent wrote:

I am disgusted with The Prime Minister’s announcement of a carbon tax. This is the lowest moment of this government.

There were many more statements from constituents along the same lines, too many for me to read in detail today. Suffice it to say, many of my constituents feel betrayed by this Labor government.

My constituents rightly believe that it is the job of government to make their lives easier, not harder. They believe that government should exist to support them in their aspirations, not work against them to make their aspirations unattainable. They believe the government should reduce the burden so that their quality of life improves, not deteriorates. The government’s carbon tax will increase the cost of living for my constituents who are already facing soaring utility bills and other price hikes. It will simply make it harder for them to make ends meet and to fulfil their aspirations.