Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Here we have the government's hypocrisy at its best. At the beginning of the week they were talking about increasing taxes, which will hurt some of the poorest families in our community, and now we are talking about a 15 per cent GST. At the same time, they are wanting to scrap and abolish family tax benefits, and that will cost the same families in our community. It is a $726 a year cut for every child of the 1.5 million families who receive family tax benefit A. For family tax benefit B, it is $354 per family. The government at the same time are saying, 'Let's have a sensible conversation about GST.' What is it going to be? Are you cutting supplements at the same time as increasing GST? People in the regional areas, particularly in my electorate of Bendigo, know that this government does not care about them. Ordinary working families, people who are having to confront these cuts head-on, are also now being told: 'Let's have a sensible conversation about GST.' This is the same government that not that long ago increased the fuel excise tax—another tax, a tax on a tax. This year they are now talking about increasing the GST by an extra five per cent. How much do regional people have to pay for their petrol? Under this government, it continues to increase. Perhaps it is because the Prime Minister does not have to travel far in his electorate because it is one of the smallest electorates in our country.