Renee Coffey (Griffith, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sir Robert Menzies once spoke of the forgotten people—Australians who worked hard, raised families, kept their communities going and asked only for a fair go. That was the tradition the Liberal Party once called its own. But when it came time to support tax cuts for working Australians, today's Liberal Party, which once said it stood for the forgotten people, has, in too many ways, simply forgotten people.

Labor's tax cuts have been delivering relief for all Australians, particularly low- and middle-income earners. Those opposite not only opposed the next round of cuts; they committed to repealing them. In Griffith every day I meet working people—renters, young families, shift workers, small-business owners, teachers, and healthcare and aged-care workers—who are doing their best to keep up. They deserve a government that delivers for them, not one that turns its back when relief is on the table. Labor's tax cuts are letting people keep more of what they earn and providing relief that shows up in their bank accounts every single pay day, ensuring we have a tax system that is fairer for the people who keep this country moving.

This week marks one year since those opposite chose to vote against Labor's tax cuts. But there is absolutely nothing to celebrate in that. This isn't a moment for celebration, but it is a powerful reminder of the priorities of those opposite.