STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Mr FRENCH (Moore) (13:47): Budgets are ultimately about choices. This budget makes a clear choice: it chooses workers, first home buyers and a tax system that rewards work, not just asset ownership. For too long, young Australians have been told to work hard, save hard and wait their turn.

But, in communities like Moore, that turn has been pushed further and further away. A young couple in Kingsley working full time can now look at the suburb they grew up in and realise that the front door of homeownership is quietly closing in front of them. That is not aspiration; that is a system out of balance.

This bill cuts taxes for working Australians and delivers a $1,000 instant deduction for work related expenses. It also starts to fix the housing tax settings. Negative gearing will continue to support investment in new homes because supply matters.

On capital gains tax, the government is returning to a fairer principle: tax real gains, not inflation. Indexation means investors are taxed on above-inflation profit, not paper gains. Existing investment decisions are protected.

So let us be clear: this is not a tax on inheritance. It is not a tax on the family home. And it is not the end of aspiration.

It is a reform that says aspiration should belong to the workers and first home buyers too, not just those already holding the assets. That is a fair choice, and I support the budget.