Ellie Whiteaker (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

While I respect Senator Lambie's passion on these issues and share her concern for Australians under cost-of-living pressures, I cannot support this matter of public importance. We on this side of the chamber do not underestimate the pressure Australian families are under. The cost-of-living challenge is real. That's why the Albanese government has been tackling it since our very first day in office in 2022 and why we've continued to treat it with the urgency it deserves.

The claims made by not just Senator Lambie but other members in the chamber as part of this debate ignore the practical, targeted and meaningful steps that our government has taken on the cost of living. What Australians need right now is not despair and is not political point scoring on this issue. They need practical action that makes a difference of their lives. That's exactly what our government is doing. Helping with the cost of living is our top priority. We're working everyday to make a difference. We've been really clear. We want people to earn more and keep more of what they earn.

Since coming to office, we've led the fight on inflation, and we've made good progress. Headline and underlying inflation are at four-year lows. Interest rates have been cut three times in six months. Wages are finally moving again after a decade of stagnation, because Labor backed a rise to the minimum wage and has delivered pay rises for essential workers like aged care workers and early childhood educators. More than 1.1 million jobs have been created since we came to government—a record for any government in a single term. The average unemployment rate is the lowest of any government in 50 years. We've rolled out the most comprehensive cost-of-living package in decades, and we've done it responsibly—without fuelling inflation and while keeping the budget in good shape.

Every household and small business is receiving energy bill relief, helping to keep the lights on and keep power bills down. In my home state of Western Australia, our partnership with the state Labor government has meant Western Australians have received thousands of dollars in power bill relief in recent years. Another round of power bill credits from our government will be delivered shortly. Families are saving thousands on child care with our cheaper childcare policy, which means families are receiving higher subsidies and which will soon see families receive three days of guaranteed subsidised care.

We're making health care cheaper too. Medicines will soon be capped at $25 a script—the lowest it's been since 2004. We've tripled the bulk-billing incentive. We've opened more than 90 Medicare urgent care clinics right across the country, so people can access free health care when they need it. We are undertaking the largest Medicare investment in over 40 years to boost bulk-billing, expanding it to all Australians and providing a new incentive payment for practices that bulk-bill every patient from 1 November this year. Our plan aims to increase bulk-billing rates, making GP visits cheaper and more accessible. Our goal is to have nine out of 10 GP visits bulk-billed by 2030. Cheaper health care is key to our agenda of tackling the cost of living.

We've also made free TAFE permanent across a number of courses in crucial areas where we need skills. We have cut student debt by 20 per cent for everyone who has one—real help for millions of Australian starting their careers. We have also raised the threshold at which graduates start paying that debt back. We've increased rent assistance and boosted working age payments, recognising the squeeze renters and lower-income Australians face. On tax, the claim that our system is broken couldn't be further from the truth. Under Labor, all 14 million taxpayers received a tax cut from 1 July, including three million Australians who would have missed out under the coalition's plan. Labor is putting more money back in the pockets of Australians to help with the cost of living.