Four Years of Labor and the Damage Keeps Mounting

I hope you and your loved ones had a wonderful Easter, a time to gather with family, reflect, and recharge and to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For many Western Australian families this year, however, Easter came with an added burden: the anxiety and uncertainty about whether the bowser would be dry, and a nagging sense that the Albanese government simply does not have a handle on things.

That feeling is not unfounded. It is the direct consequence of a Prime Minister and a government that has lost control of the economy, of our energy security, and now of a fuel crisis that has brought that failure into sharp and painful focus.

The fuel crisis that has gripped our nation over the past five weeks did not appear from nowhere.

Yes, global events, the conflict involving Iran and the pressure on the Strait of Hormuz  have driven the crisis.

But Australia did not have to be this exposed, this unprepared, and this rudderless.

The hard truth is that years of Labor's ideologically driven energy policy have left us vulnerable. Instead of investing in domestic energy security and unlocking Australia's extraordinary natural resources, this government has pursued a net-zero agenda at any cost, including the cost of Australia's resilience in exactly the kind of crisis we now face.

And when the crisis hit the Prime Minister denied it. Then he downplayed it. Then, only after persistent pressure from the Coalition, did he begin to act, belatedly adopting our policy to slash the fuel tax. Better late than never, I suppose. But this was not leadership.

Here in Western Australia, where our state has been forced to declare a state of emergency, families and small businesses have felt the consequences acutely.

The idea that Australians should simply "catch the train or bus or tram", as the Prime Minister suggested, would be insulting if it weren't so deeply out of touch. In much of our great state, there is no train or tram. There is just the road, the car, and an empty servo.

An address to the nation that said nothing

Last Wednesday evening, Australians tuned in with genuine hope. A Prime Minister addressing the nation in a time of crisis should provide clarity, a plan, and confidence. What Anthony Albanese delivered was none of those things.

There were no new details about incoming oil shipments. No figures on fuel stock levels. No clear plan for getting fuel to where it is needed. No commitment to daily transparent updates for Australians watching on in confusion.

As one journalist put it bluntly, it was little more than a "media release masquerading as an address to the nation." 

Angus Taylor: The Leadership Australia needs

Compare that performance to the address the Leader of the Opposition, Angus Taylor, delivered the next evening. He did not talk down to Australians. He did not offer vague reassurances. He laid out three clear demands of the Prime Minister and a vision for what genuine leadership in this crisis would look like.

He called for an immediate plan to get fuel to where it's needed. He called for a proper long-term energy security strategy, one that unlocks Australia's natural resources, fast-tracks exploration, and ensures we are never again left this exposed. And he called on the government to use the upcoming Budget not merely to respond to this crisis, but to set Australia up for the future.

Most importantly, Angus spoke to Australians with the respect they deserve. He reminded us that decline is not inevitable. That damage is not irreparable. And that with courageous leadership, not the confusion and drift we have witnessed from this Prime Minister, we can protect our way of life and restore our standard of living.

Four years of Labor and the damage keeps mounting

This crisis has not emerged in isolation. It is the culmination of four years of economic mismanagement that has left every Australian family worse off. Under this Labor government, Australians have experienced the biggest fall in living standards in the developed world. 

Inflation in Australia sits at 3.7 per cent, higher than France, Japan, Italy, Canada, Germany, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Government spending is at a 40-year high outside of recession. Australians have endured 14 interest rate rises under Labor. A typical mortgage is now costing families around $27,000 more per year. Productivity has collapsed by nearly five per cent. Debt is racing toward one trillion dollars, costing Australians around $50,000 every single minute just in interest.

Electricity up 38 per cent. Gas up 42 per cent. Insurance up 39 per cent. Rents up 22 per cent. This is the Labor record. This is what happens when a government loses control of the basics.

Consumer confidence has now fallen to its lowest level since records began, lower than during COVID. That is a devastating indictment of this government's stewardship.

Our commitment

The Liberal Party knows what must be done to turn this around. We are focused on cutting regulation, beating inflation, developing our natural energy resources, and restoring the fiscal discipline that gives families the room to breathe.

We believe in lower taxes, lower inflation, and lower interest rates. We believe in energy policy grounded in common sense not ideological posturing. We believe in a budget that lives within its means, so that Australians have the means to live.

At the next election, Australians will face a clear choice: more of the same drift and confusion under Anthony Albanese, or a Coalition government with the leadership, the plan, and the values to put Australia back on track.

I know which side of that choice I am on. And I believe, in their hearts, so do most Australians.

Stay strong, stay engaged, and thank you as always for everything you do for our great Liberal Party.