Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Banking and Financial Services) Share this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Won’t the new housing rate that the Prime Minister is so pleased about put us more than three percentage points above the average five per cent interest rate that applies in western Europe, Japan and North America—hardly all dying economies, Minister? Doesn’t that mean the Prime Minister’s claim that he has delivered record low interest rates is again totally false? And why are interest rates in Australia so much higher than the rest of the developed world, including economies doing well?