MATTERS OF URGENCY
Senator DARMANIN (Victoria—Deputy Government Whip in the Senate) (17:30): I think that what this debate is actually showing this afternoon is the increasingly desperate attempts from those opposite to try to convince Australians that the coalition are better economic managers. It's actually the coalition that is in crisis, not Labor. Australians know better.
They can see the track record that is relevant and credible when it comes to who has the backs of workers and who can manage the economy. I'm not sure about urgent, but this motion is quite remarkable, if only because it requires those opposite to ignore their own record and their own policies on exactly this matter. Those over there want to lecture the Australian community about wages, cost of living and housing affordability.
When Labor came into government back in 2022, inflation was higher and rising, interest rates were rising, and real wages were going backwards. In fact, real wages were falling by 3.6 per cent. That didn't happen by accident.
It happened because those opposite viewed low wage growth as a feature of their economic strategy. Those opposite spent a decade presiding over wage stagnation. It's getting really tedious to hear lectures on wage growth from the political party that treated low wage growth as an economic achievement.
They could not even bring themselves to support a modest increase in the minimum wage for Australia's lowest paid workers. When I say modest, it was $1 an hour—a $1 increase that those opposite could not support. Don't lecture us about wages.
Senator Collins talked about wage theft, yet the coalition voted against the laws to criminalise wage theft. You've suddenly realised that Australians want higher wages. What a shame that you spent a decade suppressing them.
Let's not forget that you voted against other workplace reforms, like same job, same pay and multi-employer bargaining. Does that ring a bell? These are the real policies that help move wages.
Far from relying on a narrative, as Senator Collins talked about, we have focused on action. This government has backed minimum wage increases. We have backed increases to the modern award because we understand the simple truth—one of the best ways to help with Australians' cost of living is to help Australians earn more.
The latest ABS data shows that nominal wages have grown above three per cent for 16 consecutive quarters. It's the first time this has occurred in 17 years. Not once during the 35 quarters of the former government did wage growth exceed three per cent.
Is there more to do? Of course there is, but we are getting on with it. No-one on this side of the chamber pretends otherwise.
We recognise that there is more to do, and so we've implemented practical measures that make a difference—higher wages, tax cuts for every taxpayer, six months of paid parental leave, cheaper child care, cheaper medicines and policies that continue to bring inflation down. Meanwhile, those opposite vote against these practical measures, and, instead of admitting why they're doing it—that is, because they don't want working Australians to earn more—they hide behind the words of Bill Kelty.
Then we come to housing. The opposition's housing analysis seems to consist of reading the headline and skipping the article. It's a bit like declaring that winter is over because yesterday was warmer than the day before.
Like all good Victorians, I know about a false spring. They saw one quarterly figure, got excited and forgot to check what happened over the previous 12 months. They consider a 0.3 per cent dip to be a housing crash.
Let me put this into perspective. When the Howard government first implemented their investor tax breaks 26 years ago, the average dwelling price was equal to nine years and four months worth of disposable household income. Today, it is equal to 17 years and four months of that income.
That is because, between 1997 and 2025, property values grew three times faster than wages. At the centre of this is something very obvious. We need to make it easier for people to buy their first home.
That is why our focus is on improving wage growth and levelling the playing field for first home buyers. The coalition, meanwhile, want to focus on headlines. They do not support our measures and they do not have a sensible proposal of their own.
We're increasing supply and tackling the structural causes of the housing shortage. What we're not doing is pretending that one quarterly statistic changes the underlying picture. Australians know there is more work to do and that we are getting on with doing it.
(Time expired)