QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
Dr CHALMERS (Rankin—Treasurer) (14:09): If the opposition leader really cared about cost-of-living pressures, she wouldn't have just gone to an election promising to increase taxes on every single taxpaying Australian worker. If they cared about cost-of-living pressures, they wouldn't oppose our efforts to provide responsible cost-of-living relief. Mr Taylor interjecting— Dr CHALMERS: I can hear the member for Hume chirping away over there.
I'm pleased and relieved to learn that he's still here, but I remind him that he's the one that took to the election a policy for higher taxes, bigger deficits and more debt. It was in his costings document. When it comes to the inflation numbers today, these inflation numbers do reflect a situation that I've described and acknowledged on a number of occasions, and I describe it this way.
Even with the very substantial and very sustained progress that we've made together on inflation, even with the progress that we've made on real wages, even with the progress we've made in the economy more broadly, a lot of Australians are still under pressure. I've acknowledged that, and that's reflected in the numbers today as well. In these numbers today, as the Deputy Prime Minister said a moment ago, inflation is higher than we'd like, but it is around half what we inherited from those opposite.
If those opposite want to make this point about inflation at three per cent, what do they say about inflation that they had running north of six per cent and rising when we came to office? Inflation is half what we inherited from those opposite. Mr Taylor interjecting— Dr CHALMERS: And I hear again the member for Hume.
I love it when he interjects, because it hasn't dawned on the member for Hume that, when he left office, inflation was 6.1 per cent and it was rising fast. They were spending more, they had bigger deficits, and they had more debt. Now, the point that I would make about the numbers today more specifically is that the headline number increased largely as a result of the end of state energy rebates, but it is still much lower than its peak.
The point that I would make about underlying inflation is that both numbers are important, headline and underlying, but underlying inflation was at the top of the target band in the September quarter, and that means we've seen underlying inflation within the target band for multiple quarters. Remember that underlying inflation was closer to five per cent when we came to office, and now it's around three per cent.
If those opposite were honest, they would acknowledge a couple of things. First of all, inflation is half what we inherited. Secondly, their policies would have made inflation worse, not better.
We have made it clear that we want to make more progress on inflation. We've made it very clear that progress often isn't in a straight line, as we've seen around the world. We know that there's more work to do, and that's our focus.
The SPEAKER: The member for Hume interjected nine times during that answer. Government members interjecting— The SPEAKER: Order! Members on my right, I don't need any commentary.
The member for Hume will not be interjecting, given he's used all his lives up. He won't be interjecting for the remainder of question time. And if he does, he won't be here.
Does everyone understand that? Great.