Kerrynne Liddle (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Child Protection and the Prevention of Family Violence) | Hansard source

Australians know this Labor government has tried to hoodwink them. Sell it how you like; Australians won't buy it. Every single day they are reminded their cost of living has been getting worse since Labor came to government. Their experience has been their disposable income falling as they grapple with the impact of Labor's homegrown inflation. You underestimated the common sense of Australians when they said no to your divisive, risky, failed Voice referendum, and they know your 'cost-of-living tax cuts' is fallacious—yes; untrue too. They know the phrase 'it won't be easy under Albanese' was not simply an election slogan. Your government's incompetence makes it their real, daily lived experience.

We all know low-income families are doing it really tough. Everyone is affected, and charities tell us people who are now reaching out for help are different to those they usually see. Foodbank reported 255,000 South Australian households went hungry in the year to October. That represents more than one-third of South Australian households. Fifty per cent of those seeking food relief were employed. They are the new working poor, made so by this Labor government. Australians are paying more for health, food, education, housing, transport, electricity, gas and insurance, and now they've exhausted their savings. While the Labor government was distracted by the Voice, they lost focus on the priorities of ordinary Australians. Now they are further distracted from the real issue when they should be focused on the symptoms of inflation.

Even with the tax cuts and rebates, South Australians remain about $20,000 worse off under the Albanese Labor government. Your $300 power rebate goes nowhere for them. South Australia has the nation's second-lowest average yearly earnings of about $70,000 a year. Today that means families paying an average new loan of $530,000 in South Australia, with an average interest rate of around six per cent, are losing half of that to mortgage repayments, desperate to keep their homes. Renters endured a 15 per cent jump in costs over the past year if they're renting a unit, and they're dreading renegotiating their leases. Families are making the choice between heating and eating every day and going to dangerous life-threatening extremes to keep warm. That's not a luxury.

One in five South Australians are seeking to use hardship provisions for their energy bills because they can't afford $60 a week for gas and electricity. So your one-off rebate goes nowhere. And they have some of the highest renewables mixes in the nation. Australians will take your rebate, but they know it really does nothing, and you know it too. You promised $275 cheaper power to attract votes at the 2022 election, and Australian families have seen none of that. What they've seen is their bills going higher and higher.

If you are one of the 400,000 South Australians who live in regional, rural or remote areas you're likely to have been doing it even tougher on just about everything. Under Labor, the bulk-billing rate is nearly 10 per cent lower than it was under the coalition government. And the South Australian Labor Party have just added to that pain by slapping a payroll tax on general practitioners. Under Labor, the health system in South Australia is about to get even sicker and cost more for patients.

South Australians battle the highest inflation rate in the nation, with the CPI rising 4.3 per cent in the 12 months to March 2024. It's now equal to the national rate of four per cent, which is not really a gain. If you're one of the 150,000 small businesses employing 300,000 South Australians, it's getting hard to even afford to keep the doors open. The cost of doing business is getting higher by the day. Hundreds of SA companies were liquidated in the past financial year, and that doesn't count those who just shut up shop, their dreams and aspirations shattered. From Melrose Park to hotels in the Adelaide CBD, business is down by up to 40 per cent. Business owners have shared that terrible picture of uncertainty with me. When South Australian businesses are going out of business, there are fewer jobs. There is less money in the economy and the situation is destined to just get worse.

While this government focuses on rebates and spending taxpayers' money, it's not addressing the real reason for inflation; nor is it addressing the cost of living. It might be a new financial year and you might be selling your message, but they ain't listening. This Labor government is offering nothing new in this new financial year, and Australians and South Australians know they can just expect worse.