MATTERS OF PUBLIC IMPORTANCE
Mr REBELLO (McPherson) (16:13): That was five minutes from a government member who focused on the opposition. Now, you would think that, if you had a record to stand on, you'd stand up in this place and you'd actually speak to the motion, you'd speak to the people in the galleries and to the people watching, and you'd talk about everything that the government is doing to address the issues that you have raised in your speech.
So I say to the member opposite that perhaps the next time he comes into this place to contribute to the conversation he should come with something productive about what he and his government have done in the last four years, because it has been more than four years since those on this side of the chamber were in office. Quite frankly, Australians are sick of this.
They're sick of hearing their politicians speaking about 'when the other side was in power, this is what they did'. We're living in 2026 and we're focused on the future. Australians at the moment are really struggling.
They're doing it very tough, whether it's small businesses, individuals or families. The reality is that they want to know that their government is doing something to make their life better. They don't want to hear the political rhetoric that is coming from those opposite.
This MPI, matter of public importance, goes to the need for the government to be clear with Australians as to why they're worse off. I commend the Leader of the Opposition for moving this, because it goes to something that we're seeing all too commonly at the moment. It goes to the fact that the Prime Minister, the Treasurer and those opposite have no respect for the truth and no respect for the Australian people.
They're not being upfront and honest with the Australian people about the situation that we're in as a country. I think Australians are looking for the leadership that the member previously spoke about, but we're not getting that. We're not getting that from this government—whether it's the dodgy grant deals, whether it's the PM not admitting to falling off the stage, whether it's the fact that he's distancing himself from his best mates and saying that they're distant Labor staffers, or whether it's the issues about intergenerational fairness that the Prime Minister always speaks about, which are really important to Australians.
I've spoken in this place many times—the Prime Minister has used this concept of intergenerational fairness that he's talking about to justify his changes to the CGT, his changes to negative gearing, his changes to the private health insurance rebate for Australians who are 65-plus and his abhorrent treatment of veterans when it comes to implementing a $5,000 cap on their allied health.
At the end of the day, those opposite need to reconsider that term 'intergenerational fairness' and perhaps replace it with 'intergenerational fraud' because Australians at the moment, especially young people who are trying to get into the housing market, are not finding it easier. If you're speaking to people in my electorate on the southern Gold Coast, these changes haven't given them a leg up into the housing market.
They've locked them out. The government is creating a generation of permanent renters. That's why this motion is so important today.
It goes to the ethic of what those opposite are speaking about in this place and are speaking about across the country. It goes to the fact that they have no respect for the truth and no respect for the Australian people. This is after a situation where the Prime Minister said—and I think those on this side of the chamber will remember; those on that side seem to have selective memories.
But on this side, we all remember when the Prime Minister said that nobody would be left behind. Whether it's veterans, whether it's young people trying to get into their first home, whether it's people who are 65-plus or whether it's renters, all of these people are falling behind faster than before under this government. The government cannot admit to the consequences of their budget.
We see the consequences every day, and Australians live and breathe them every day. We're seeing rents up more than 24 per cent since Labor came to office. We're seeing the clearance rates crash through the floor over the last couple of months.
Like I said, we are seeing first home buyers struggling to get into the housing market. This is a serious problem, and it demands a serious solution. For those opposite to get up and speak for five minutes of their contribution while they're in government about us, not about them—I think there's something inherently wrong with that.
The government has failed on so many different things, and it's going to affect our most vulnerable, whether it's our older Australians or whether it's our families. I speak to so many mothers across my electorate who speak about the struggles that they have, especially the single mothers. All those opposite can do is focus on the opposition.
They don't have a solution for this country. They're letting us down, and I commend the Leader of the Opposition for putting this MPI forward.