5&5: He cuts you pay
This week delivered the 2025-26 Budget, both the House and the Senate sat and we had Senate Estimates - there was a lot going on.
Here’s the 5&5.
BEST
Cost of living relief
Help for families
Senator Louise Pratt
Labor Governments for women
Delulu with no solulu
WORST
Tax no-no
Fuel fantasy
Nuclear waste of time
To oppose or not oppose that is the question
Selling out
1. An Albanese Labor Government will provide more meaningful and sensible cost of living assistance, with tax cuts for every Australian worker, and an additional $150 in energy bill relief. While we’re working hard to put more money in people’s pockets, Peter Dutton wants Australians to pay for their bosses lunch. The PM summed it up. “They opposed the cheaper medicines policy that we've put in place. They opposed every other measure, including cheaper child care. They opposed free TAFE and said, 'People don't value it because it's free.' Every single measure that has been put forward, they have opposed. They don't know what they're for; they only know what they're against. And what they have are secret cuts that they want to implement after the election.”
2. Another way we’re helping ease the cost of living pressure is by providing cheaper child care for millions of families. Anne Aly said it best. “Today the ANU Centre for Social Research confirms that around two thirds of all Australians led by single-parent families and middle-income families have gained up to $2,500 through our tax cuts, childcare and parental leave since the Albanese Labor Government came into office. That's real money. Real money into the pockets of families. And that is how you do cost of living relief. That is how you do it. And this is how you risk it. You risk it by voting for an Opposition that has no vision, no plan, no policy. While we're reforming education to build a better future for the next generation, the Opposition wants to keep the next generation paying for their $600 billion nuclear fantasy.”
3. On Wednesday, long serving WA Senator Louise Pratt delivered her valedictory speech in the Senate, it's worth a watch.
4. Labor Government’s have a proud history of delivering for women. Under the Whitlam Government we had the first ever women’s adviser in the world, the Hawke Government introduced the sex discrimination act, and we saw Julia Gillard become Australia’s fist woman Prime Minister. (Meanwhile, Tony Abott appointed himself Minister for Women.) Now we have the first majority women government in Australia’s history, investing in women's safety, delivering expanded paid parental leave, publishing the gender pay gaps of big businesses, making contraceptives and menopause treatment cheaper and delivering pay rises for aged care and early childhood educators. This week Finance Minister, Katy Gallagher delivered the 2025-26 Women’s Budget Statement and said, “We know that when women have fair opportunities, are treated equally, have access to health care and are safe, we grow our workforce, lift our living standards, boost productivity, and maximise the talent and capability we need to build Australia’s future.”
5. It might have left anyone over the age of 35 scratching their heads, but the Prime Minister proved he’s keeping up with the kids, during Wednesday’s debate on our Budget tax cuts. The TikTok generation knows ‘delulu’ means having an abundant supply of baseless confidence… or so I’m told… and it perfectly sums up Peter Dutton. “This is a mob that left us with a $78 billion deficit that we turned into a $22 billion surplus. The following year, they left us with a $56 billion forecast deficit that we turned into a $15 billion surplus. This year, we have almost halved the deficit that they forecast. And those opposite had the hide this morning out there on their TV roundups to speak about a stronger economy and to speak about fiscal policy. They are delulu with no solulu. They are completely delusional when it comes to that.”
1. In the budget, Jim Chalmers announced a tax cut for every worker. It takes the bottom tax rate to its lowest level in more than 50 years. But it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Opposition voted against the cuts. "What the Budget is all about is providing cost of living relief, cutting taxes for every Australian taxpayer, strengthening Medicare and building Australia's future. It's disappointing but not surprising to see that they voted against our tax cuts because whenever we have tried to help Australians with the cost of living, they have tried to prevent it. As we get closer and closer to this election when the Prime Minister calls it, Australians will have a very clear choice - this Labor Government and this Prime Minister, cutting taxes for every taxpayer and helping Australians with the cost of living, or that Opposition Leader, who has a secret agenda for cuts, which will make Australians worse off."
2. Instead of supporting our tax cuts, Peter Dutton’s big idea this week was a temporary change to the fuel excise - something his own party admits is a bad idea. “The leftovers of the Morrison Government, have borrowed the leftovers of the Morrison Government's policies. When in the March 2022 budget, they proposed something very similar that then just disappeared. And they've had time to think about it since, Mr Speaker, and indeed, they made comments about it since. Very helpfully. This is what the Leader of the Opposition said. October 2023. ‘There can be temporary relief for a reduction of excise if they believe it is going to be a benefit. It's costly and it gained by the oil joints.’ That's what he said. Not to be outdone, the Shadow Treasurer, ‘So whilst putting more money in people's pockets through a fuel excise might sound good, the problem is, it's not actually solving the inflation problem, and you'll see price rises elsewhere as a result.’ December 5, 2023. Senator Jane Hume, the finance spokesperson, ‘Putting subsidies on fuel prices can in fact fuel the inflationary fire rather than temper it.’ November 2023... There's more, just in case you think that that was a one-off. Maybe they said this in the shadow cabinet meeting. ‘There's two problems with it. One is, it could all be eaten up with global volatility in a moment. So people might not actually feel that in their hip pocket.’”
3. The Opposition will do anything to avoid talking about their fantasy nuclear plan. This week, the Shadow Treasurer had trouble even remembering how much it’s going to cost. In Question Time on Tuesday, Chris Bowen reminded him. “The Shadow Treasurer was on Insiders on Sunday. He was asked about this. He couldn't remember the cost, and then he said it was $600 billion, and then he just kept saying it's 44 per cent cheaper. Now, what he didn't reveal is that that's based on producing 40 per cent less electricity. The Leader of the Opposition will be up on Thursday. Perhaps he's going to announce their health policy, with 40 per cent fewer patients by 2050 to make it cheaper; or their education policy, with 40 per cent fewer students to make it cheaper; or their defence policy, in which they will cut Defence by 40 per cent—because that's what they do. They just say: 'We'll just make less. It'll cost less.' All this spending will have to be paid for by cuts. We agree with the Leader of the Opposition—look at past performance. He's cut health before. That means that, when it comes to the Leader of the Opposition, he will cut and the Australian people will pay.”
4. Peter Dutton and the Opposition have always opposed our Medicare Urgent Care Clinics - that’s nothing new. But as it turns out, one Liberal MP may not be so opposed after all. Aaron Violi, the Liberal Member for Casey, has had a petition calling for a Medicare Urgent Care Clinic in the Yarra Ranges. Mark Butler was more than happy to give the member an update during question time on Wednesday, “The Member will be so pleased that one of the 50 Medicare Urgent Care Clinics we announced last night will be in the Yarra Ranges. He might not be so pleased that that lot is opposed to it. We support it, as does the Member for Casey - we've got your back, Sunshine. Even if this bloke has left you high and dry. But I'd also say to the Member for Casey, he shouldn't be surprised. These guys have never liked Medicare, that's why he tried to make everyone pay every time they went to the GP, that's why he tried to make everyone pay every time they went to a hospital emergency department and he will do it again.”
5. On Tuesday, when he was standing up for Australian manufacturers, Ed Husic didn’t hold back. He finished off accusing the opposition of selling out the country. Liberal Dan Tehan stood up straight away with a point of order. Everyone presumed he was going to insist that Ed had to withdraw the accusation that they’d sold out the country. But no, Dan just asked for a document to be tabled. Apparently saying the Liberal Party had sold out Australia is no longer contested.
So according to official standing orders at the time that I’m typing this, Parliament is back in a week. But we all watch the news. So, two simple thoughts as we get to the end of the 47th Parliament. Thank you for taking an interest and reading the 5&5. It’s an important chance for us to let you know what we’ve been doing, even when it doesn’t always make it on the news. But secondly, there’ll be lots of misinformation out in this campaign, and the people who receive this email have a really solid knowledge of the facts. Please don’t waste a conversation. There’s a lot at stake. We can do this, and we don’t want to risk Dutton.
‘til then,
Tony
PS. The song of the week is Let's Go by King Stingray.
