EMPTY PROMISES, RISING COSTS – LABOR IS LETTING AUSTRALIANS DOWN

Dear Liberal friends,

The new Albanese Labor Government is already failing Australians and we haven’t even returned to the Parliament yet.

Here are five ways they are failing our nation (and there were more than five to pick from):

1. Our historic and vitally important relationship with the United States.

Penny Wong had three clear jobs in Washington last week. Secure assurances on AUKUS; protect Australia from US tariffs; and lock in a meeting between the PM and the President. She returned empty handed on all three fronts.

On AUKUS, there is no clarity. No assurances. No visible progress. 

On trade, there is still no exemption for Australia from US tariffs, even as others gain exemptions. And despite 240 days since the US election, there is still no scheduled meeting between President Trump and Prime Minister Albanese. 

The Coalition stands ready to support the government in advancing Australia’s national interest. But it is time the government treated this relationship with the urgency and seriousness it demands.

We want Australia to succeed on the international stage including in seeking assurances on AUKUS.

The focus right now should be on building our relationship with the US which can’t be left to the ambassador. We need the Prime Minister to step up.

2. Defence spending.

We should be increasing our defence spending because people like Sir Angus Houston who completed the Defence Strategic Review and organisations like Australian Strategic Policy Institute tell us to, not because any American tells us to but because it's in our national interest to do so. 

We are not spending enough right now to defend ourselves, and that's why the Coalition took to the last election a policy to increase it to 2.5% of GDP in five years and 3% of GDP in 10 years.

As we enter the most challenging strategic environment since the Second World War, Australia cannot afford to underinvest our national security. 

We must ensure our Defence Force has the funding it needs to keep our nation safe and prepared. 

Australia must commit to increasing our Defence spending to at least 3% of GDP, and Labor must find ways to finance it.

The Prime Minister needs to heed that advice of Australia’s experts and increase our defence spending.

3. The economy.

Under Labor the economy is stalling and households have gone backwards.

Households are in recession, business investment is falling, and productivity has flatlined.

The economy only grew by a lacklustre 0.2 per cent in the March quarter, while annual growth is stuck at 1.3 per cent, less than half the long-run average of 2.7 per cent.

These figures from the ABS have shot to bits Labor’s pre-election claim that the economy had “turned a corner” - exposing the Prime Minister’s rhetoric as nothing more than an empty election slogan.

Australia has dropped from 13th to 18th in just one year in the latest world competitiveness rankings. And shockingly Australia has dropped from 20th to 60th place in real GDP growth per capita since last year.

Now Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ response that “any growth is a good outcome” – is a clear sign of how low Labor’s ambition is for the Australian economy.

Labor promised a better life for working families. Instead, Australians are being squeezed, living standards have declined, and the economy is going nowhere fast.

A report by Anglicare lays bare the human cost of Labor’s failure to manage the cost of living crisis.

A full-time worker on the minimum wage is left with just $33 a week after paying for rent, food and transport. That’s not a budget, that’s a crisis, yet Labor keeps telling Australians they've never had it so good.

When minimum wage workers are left with just $1 to spare, we’re no longer talking about the cost of living, we’re talking about the cost of surviving.

Under Labor, energy has gone from a household essential to an unaffordable luxury. Australians are skipping meals and going without heating just to keep the lights on.

More than 330,000 Australians are now trapped in over $300 million of energy debt. Bills are pushing families into crisis, and the only answer Labor has is to shop around.

4. More costs and red tape.

Under Anthony Albanese, the new financial year brings higher bills, lower living standards, and a flatlining economy.

On July 1 the Government started rolling out a raft of changes that will hit households, businesses and workers in the hip pocket. Whether it’s higher electricity prices, increased small business costs, more red tape or new vehicle taxes, the common thread is clear - Australians are being asked to pay more and get less. 

This new financial year was Labor’s chance to reset, instead Labor has doubled down on higher costs, more red tape, and policies that make life harder for working Australians.

The longer Labor is in power, the poorer Australians become.

Here’s some examples of why Australians are paying more.

A tax on small business - the Albanese Government has removed the tax deductibility of interest charged by the ATO on overdue tax debts. With the ATO’s interest rate currently at 11.17%, this change increases the financial burden on approximately 2.6 million small businesses, making it more costly to manage cash flow and settle tax obligations.

Labor’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard kicks in, applying financial penalties on popular vehicles like utes, 4WDs and family cars. Industry experts warn these penalties will increase prices by thousands of dollars - at a time when families are already stretched. 

Wholesale prices for 7 out of 8 NBN plans are increasing by between 2% and 3%, adding up to $1.71 more per month for providers. 

5. Higher power bills

Australian households are being hit with another round of higher electricity bills thanks to the Prime Minister’s renewables only agenda.

Millions of Australians will be paying more for their electricity, with some customers handing over an extra $300 through higher prices.

Labor’s promise that electricity prices would be $275 cheaper this year was a lie and the Prime Minister should apologise.

Instead prices are up to $1,300 more than what Labor promised they would be.

There is no transparency about the true costs to consumers of Labor’s renewables only approach and underwriting renewable energy projects using taxpayer money.

Australians want action to reduce carbon emissions but not at any cost.

The Prime Minister needs to answer the following questions:

• When will Australians get the $275 cut to their electricity bills that Labor promised?

• How much will Australians pay to deliver his renewables only agenda?

• For all the cost and pain Australians are enduring will the Government achieve the net zero by 2050 target?

• Will he promise to start properly consulting with all regional communities expected to host solar and wind farms, transmission lines and substations?

So there are five clear ways the Albanese Government is failing Australians and here’s a sixth bonus failure that I’ve written about before and will continue to highlight.

6. Labor’s superannuation tax

Labor's super tax is super big and super bad, and the Coalition will continue fighting against it. 

We will oppose this unfair super tax every step of the way.

It is grossly unfair and it flies in the face of everything we believe in as a Coalition.

We believe in lower, simpler, fairer taxes.  

As the Shadow Treasurer Ted O’Brien has said, Labor’s super tax fails on all three criteria. 

The worst part of Labor’s super tax is taxing unrealised capital gains or paper profits - so people will pay a tax on theoretical profits which haven’t entered their bank account. 

When Labor runs out of money it comes after yours.

This is a slippery slope. Where will Labor apply this next? The family home?

Our approach as an Opposition is to be constructive where we can, but critical where we must. And Labor’s super tax gives us no cause to be anything but critical.