Dai Le (Fowler, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today on behalf of my community in Fowler and, in particular, a constituent from Wakeley, Narkis, who has written with deep concern about the rising cost of living and the Reserve Bank's latest interest rate increase. For families in Fowler, this is more than a policy debate or a blame game about interest rate rises. Rates have risen. What matters now is what the government will do to reduce the pressure families and small businesses will face moving forward.

Every 0.25 per cent rise in cash rates means higher mortgage repayments, higher rents and even greater strain on households struggling to afford groceries, power bills and basic necessities. People in my community were clinging to the hope that meaningful relief was finally on the way. Instead, they're met with slogans and announcements that do not match the reality they're living, while being told, yet again, that interest rate rises are not the government's responsibility, when governing means taking responsibility for the consequences, not deflecting them.

My constituents tell me our community is hurting. Families are lying awake at night worrying about keeping a roof over their heads, managing energy costs and making ends meet from one week to the next. They're not economists or political strategists. They're mums and dads, carers, pensioners, small-business owners and young people trying to build a future. They're exhausted by uncertainty and worn down by constant pressure—bracing for the next bill, the next bank notice or the next letter from the landlord.

Narkis also shared a growing frustration across my electorate. While families and small businesses are doing it tougher than ever, this parliament is distracted. Too much energy is spent on messaging and political manoeuvring, and too little on delivering stability and relief for people carrying the real burden. These are people who love this country. They believe in fairness and the dignity of hard work. They are not asking for special treatment; they are asking for focused, grounded leadership that understands their reality and acts on it.

The message from Fowler is clear. People are not asking for handouts; they're asking for action. Cost-of-living relief is not a slogan. It's the difference between paying the mortgage and falling behind, between keeping a small business open and shutting the doors, between keeping the lights on and being forced to turn them off and between filling a prescription and going without. So, today, on behalf of Narkis and thousands of others in my electorate, I urge the leaders in this House to wake up to reality, to listen to the voices of ordinary Australians in Wakeley, Cabramatta, Liverpool, Warwick Farm and across south-west and Western Sydney. Their struggles are lived every single day.

My community believes in a fair go. With rising interest rates and no real relief in sight, it is now up to this parliament to prove that the fair go still means something, and to ensure that families in Fowler and across south-west and Western Sydney are not left behind in the upcoming budget. Thank you.