Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to oppose this MPI brought by Senator Sharma. It's actually an interesting debate that we're having here today, not because of what has been brought forward by Senator Sharma but because of what is missing from the motion that has been brought by Senator Sharma. Those opposite want the people to forget what this government inherited when we came to government in 2022, and they want people to not factor in what is happening in the world today—a serious conflict that has disrupted countries all around the world. They want to pretend that the government has stood still while households have been under pressure. The contribution that I was just listening to never mentioned, as far as I heard, anything about the war in the Middle East.

But it is a good time, and it's opportune—and I thank Senator Sharma for the opportunity—to talk about the facts. The facts, when Labor came into office, were that inflation was rising; wages had been kept low—deliberately kept low as part of the federal coalition government's plan for workers in this country; Medicare had been weakened year after year after year while those opposite were in government; and too many Australians had been told they were on their own. I won't even go into robodebt and what they thought about people who were on social security.

Since then, the Labor government has focused on something simple but important—that is, helping people now and rebuilding the systems that they rely on. That is why every taxpayer has received a tax cut, with another coming in July. It is why minimum-wage and award-wage workers have seen pay rises worth more than $9,000. It is why we have expanded paid parental leave and made sure that super is paid on it. It is why we are cutting student debt by 20 per cent, with average savings of around $5,000. And it's why we're backing paid prac for students training for essential jobs. If anyone in the coalition had been out talking to university students about paid prac, they'd know how popular it is but also how absolutely needed it is. Those things are extremely important—and that is not doing nothing. That is a government making choices to assist Australians. It's making the choice to rebuild the systems that the former coalition government had weakened.

The same is true in health. The cost of living is not just what happens at the checkout; it affects whether you can afford to see a doctor or fill a prescription. As I said, we've strengthened Medicare. We've also expanded bulk-billing and opened Medicare urgent care clinics right across the country. In my home state of Tasmania, those clinics are now up and running and making a difference to people, to families. They're up and running in Bridgewater, Burnie, Devonport, Kingston, Launceston and Sorell, with two clinics in Hobart, giving people access to seven-days-a-week urgent care close to their home. And, of course, as of 1 January, PBS medicines are now $25 or less. That matters to people trying to hold the household budget together.

This government cares about Australians, and we'll continue to support them. (Time expired)