Alison Byrnes
Cunningham · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“Something I am particularly excited about is that, as of 1 July this year, Australia now has a national environment protection agency. It will be a national environmental watchdog with real powers, a clear set of rules, a clear mandate to monitor and enforce those rules, and big consequences for doing the wrong thing.”
“The ACCC has the funding and the power to seek penalties for supermarkets of up to $10 million per breach of our new laws or 10 per cent of their annual turnover in the previous year. It's just one of the ways that we're working to keep supermarkets competitive and fair for customers.”
“This disproportionately affects younger workers and those in insecure work, who are often lower paid and vulnerable. They are also the people who can least afford to miss out on retirement savings.”
“At the same time, 1 July saw three million workers receive a well-deserved pay rise, with modern award wages increasing by 4.75 per cent and the national minimum wage going up by six per cent. We have advocated for increases to the minimum wage at every annual wage review since we came to government.”
“The Albanese Labor government is delivering the investment the Illawarra needs to be a true force in the advanced manufacturing and clean energy industries. Illawarra company Sicona Battery Technologies is pioneering the next generation of battery materials.”
“This funding will help Sicona expand its production capacity by 300 times, taking the tech from pilot scale towards full commercial scale. As global demand for batteries continues to grow, particularly for energy storage and electric vehicles, this investment will unlock enormous potential across Australia and globally.”
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“The National EPA will be a modern and effective regulator, enforcing the rules we have put in place under the reformed Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. There is a long list of changes that have now come into force, far too many to cover here, but I am so proud that our government is getting on with the job of delivering the change that our communities need. We're helping people with the cost of living, lifting wages and giving everyone a fair go.”
“Something I am particularly excited about is that, as of 1 July this year, Australia now has a national environment protection agency. It will be a national environmental watchdog with real powers, a clear set of rules, a clear mandate to monitor and enforce those rules, and big consequences for doing the wrong thing. In my electorate along the beautiful Illawarra coast, we have one of the most beautiful natural environments you will find anywhere in the world, and we're a regional city that is growing, so ensuring that the rules around what you can and can't do are crystal clear actually supports everyone. It protects our precious environment, and it helps us to get on with building the critical infrastructure we need in housing and energy in the right places, in the right settings, and with consistency, transparency and integrity.”
“The ACCC has the funding and the power to seek penalties for supermarkets of up to $10 million per breach of our new laws or 10 per cent of their annual turnover in the previous year. It's just one of the ways that we're working to keep supermarkets competitive and fair for customers. We're also making the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct mandatory, tackling shrinkflation with stronger unit-pricing rules and funding CHOICE to give shoppers more information on supermarket prices. Personally, I've always been a big supporter of local fruit and veg shops. Our changes are also backing them in, with $2 million in grants to help fresh produce suppliers to get the skills they need to take on the big supermarkets. More competition strengthens the grocery market. It keeps prices down and it gives everyone a fairer go at the checkout.”
“This disproportionately affects younger workers and those in insecure work, who are often lower paid and vulnerable. They are also the people who can least afford to miss out on retirement savings. That's why I am so delighted that, as of 1 July this year, superannuation must be paid within seven business days of pay day instead of every quarter. This means that workers will start earning returns on their super sooner, reducing the risk of unpaid super and ultimately leaving them better off when in retirement. We're also helping all Australians to get a fairer deal at the checkout, with our ban on supermarket price gouging now law. From 1 July, if supermarkets are doing the wrong thing and are charging prices that are not in line with what it costs to stock their shelves, they will pay the price.”
“At the same time, 1 July saw three million workers receive a well-deserved pay rise, with modern award wages increasing by 4.75 per cent and the national minimum wage going up by six per cent. We have advocated for increases to the minimum wage at every annual wage review since we came to government. As a result, for five years in a row, these workers have seen increases in their pay, with the national minimum wage now $12,000 a year higher and above $1,000 a week for the very first time. That's more money in the pockets of cleaners, care workers, workers in hospitality and retail, and more. We know that one of the most important foundations for a comfortable and secure retirement is a healthy super balance. At the moment there is about $6 billion a year in unpaid super.”
“Congratulations, Speaker, on your 10 years in the parliament, which you and the class of 2016 are celebrating today. I want to highlight some of the changes the Albanese Labor government has delivered from 1 July. We are completely focused on helping Australians deal with cost-of-living pressures. We know that people have been doing it tough, with rising costs from the servo to the supermarket, so we're helping people earn more and keep more of what they earn. From 1 July, every Australian taxpayer received their third tax cut, thanks to the Albanese Labor government. The combined impact of our tax cuts will leave the average working Australian up to $2,800 better off every single year.”
“My question is to the Minister for Social Services. How is the Albanese Labor government delivering on its commitment to strengthen paid parental leave, and how is it supporting families? What are the risks to this?”
“This funding will help Sicona expand its production capacity by 300 times, taking the tech from pilot scale towards full commercial scale. As global demand for batteries continues to grow, particularly for energy storage and electric vehicles, this investment will unlock enormous potential across Australia and globally. Our region has the skills, capability and drive to lead the clean energy transition and strengthen Australia's advanced manufacturing future. Local companies like Sicona, Hysata, Green Gravity, Gridsight, Gravitas and more are creating a cleaner, cheaper and more secure energy system. We're backing local jobs and local innovation, and we're backing the future made in the Illawarra.”
“The Albanese Labor government is delivering the investment the Illawarra needs to be a true force in the advanced manufacturing and clean energy industries. Illawarra company Sicona Battery Technologies is pioneering the next generation of battery materials. Their innovative technology, born out of work at the University of Wollongong, will cut battery charging times by 40 per cent, improve performance and create a sovereign battery supply chain in Australia. It is compatible with existing lithium-ion technology, which means it can be used in everything from electric vehicles to drones, laptops and so much more. I am delighted that the Albanese Labor government is investing in Sicona, with $45 million delivered this week through ARENA.”
“He generously volunteered at the University of Wollongong, the Yours and Owls music-booking company, the Music Farmers music store and the Oz Poetry community. Music Farmers owner Jeb Taylor said, 'Ben gave basically every local artist in Wollongong their first radio airplay and on-air interview.' A constant presence in the music scene and a champion of many, Ben was always there to help. His loss is felt deeply.”
“His legacy lives on, and I give my sincere condolences to his wife, Sue, and his entire family. In January this year, Wollongong lost another local legend, Ben Hession. Ben devoted 34 years of service to local community radio station VOX FM, mentoring presenters, championing local artists and generously giving his time, his kindness and his care to so many. President of VOX FM Lilian Wings described Ben as 'a man whose quiet dedication shaped the very soul of VOX FM and left an imprint on the Wollongong community that will be felt for generations'. Lilian said, 'To speak of Ben is to speak about loyalty, humility and a lifetime of service given without ever seeking recognition.' Ben's contributions extended far beyond the station.”
“He was also responsible for the University of Wollongong's first international campus, in Dubai, now one of four, taking the uni from a regional campus to a global leader. Even in his retirement, Professor McKinnon and his wife, Sue Walker, continued to make generous philanthropic donations to the university, establishing research fellowships and supporting future generations of academic leaders. Australia's former chief scientist Professor Ian Chubb described Professor McKinnon as the 'Wizard of Wollongong' and highlighted his unique ability to 'not just open doors but make you believe that the doorways were there to walk through'. His successor and deputy, Gerard Sutton, described him as 'probably the best vice-chancellor Australia has ever had, in terms of what he's achieved'.”
“Today I acknowledge the loss of two highly accomplished local people this year. Emeritus Professor Ken McKinnon AO was the University of Wollongong's second vice-chancellor. Sadly passing away in April, Professor McKinnon has left behind a monumental legacy. His tenure spanned from 1981 to 1994. Current vice-chancellor Max Lu described him as ' a visionary leader whose impact on the University of Wollongong has been long lasting and deeply felt'. Professor McKinnon was the driving force behind the university's rise as a world-class teaching and research facility, with his steadfast belief in education, community and science shaping the university that we know and love today.”
“My question is to the Minister for Communications. How is the Albanese Labor government finishing the job of rolling out a reliable and futureproof national broadband network? What other approaches has the government been asked to consider?”
“Their technology is compatible with existing global manufacturing infrastructure, it improves the performance of lithium ion batteries, it's cost effective, and it's scalable. These are batteries that will power the electric vehicles of the future. They will be essential for clean energy storage, and they were founded in the Illawarra. Sicona is a vital part of our local, innovative, advanced manufacturing industry, supporting local jobs and contributing to the Future Made in Australia—and in the Illawarra. It is our government that has delivered the right policy settings to unlock a future where electric vehicles are within reach for more Australians. They are cheaper and cleaner, they bring down costs and emissions, and they are delivered by the Albanese Labor government.”
“Supported by the Housing Australia Future Fund and NSW government and council funding, these charging stations will help families in need to reduce their petrol costs with cheaper, cleaner electric vehicles. It's really great to see, and I'd like to congratulate the Housing Trust for this important inclusion. In the Illawarra, we are not just adopting this technology; we are helping to drive the innovation behind it. As we shift to a clean energy future and we electrify more of our technology, having the battery power to back it up is absolutely crucial. Sicona Battery Technologies is pioneering the next generation of battery materials and creating a sovereign battery supply chain. Their innovative technology, created in the Illawarra, can reduce battery charging times by 40 per cent, which is simply incredible.”
“Across the Illawarra, we've got an ever-increasing supply of fast chargers, including two on public lands, thanks to Wollongong City Council and the NRMA. Council has also recently installed a range of kerbside chargers mounted on power poles in Wollongong, Thirroul and Austinmer. Installed in partnership with EVX Australia and Endeavour Energy, these chargers are powered by 100 per cent renewable energy, helping electric vehicle owners charge up on the go. I was pleased to also spot some EV charging stations at the new social and affordable apartment block that the Housing Trust opened in the heart of Wollongong just last week at Warruya.”
“In fact, our policies have been so successful at delivering a market with more choice that we've refocused the fringe benefits tax exemption to EVs that cost under $75,000. This is not something we could have done three years ago, because there simply were not enough vehicles available in that price range. Now there are. At the same time, we're helping more local people charge their cars at home for free, thanks to more than 2,500 cheaper home batteries across the Cunningham electorate. From 1 July, our Solar Sharer Offer will see all households provided with three hours of free power every day—extremely handy for charging up electric vehicles for free. Australians are embracing cleaner and cheaper forms of power for their homes, for their businesses and for their cars.”
“The statutory review of the electric car discount showed that, thanks to our policies, there are now more models to choose from at a greater range of prices, making EVs more affordable and accessible to everyday Australians. Treasury estimates almost 100,000 vehicles have benefited from the fringe benefit tax exemption. We know that in May this year there was an EV purchased every two minutes. That's compared to every 45 minutes four years ago—a truly incredible uptake. In the Wollongong local government area, there are more than 11,000 registered hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery electric vehicles. These figures are not by accident; they are the result of a government that has put the right policy settings in place to allow more electric vehicles to enter our market—a choice for consumers and more affordable prices.”
“The people of the Illawarra know renewable energy is the future. It's cheaper and it's cleaner, and the same is true for electric vehicles. They drive down emissions, and they save thousands of dollars in petrol costs over the life of the car. Thanks to the Albanese Labor government, electric vehicles are becoming more affordable, driving a huge surge in EV purchases. It is absolutely clear that the new vehicle efficiency standard is working. More EVs and low-emissions vehicles are entering the market than ever before. This standard helped bring Australia into line with the rest of the world, making Australia a new target market for more electric vehicle manufacturers. Our tax-saving initiatives for EVs have also encouraged more people to purchase low-emissions vehicles by reducing upfront costs.”
“I move: That this House: (1) acknowledges that the Government has taken decisive action to support Australians into cheaper to run cars through the Treasury Laws Amendment (Electric Car Discount) Act 2022 and the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard Act 2024 ; (2) notes that as a result: (a) the share of new vehicles sold that are electric or plug-in hybrid has grown from under 2 per cent in April 2022 to 27.5 per cent in April 2026, equivalent to 515 Australians buying an electric vehicle (EV) every day, compared with just 29 a day four years ago; (b) the total number of EV models available in Australia has nearly tripled over the past three and a half years, with models available under $40,000 growing from just 2 to more than 10; (c) nearly half of all new light vehicles sold in April 2026 were electric, plug-in hybrid or hybrid, up from just one in ten in April 2022; (3) welcomes the Government's commitment to build on this progress by reforming the fringe benefits tax exemption for electric vehicles, continuing to put cheaper to run cars within reach of more Australian families; and (4) acknowledges that it is because the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard has succeeded in bringing more affordable EVs to market that the Government is now able to focus its EV tax cut on those affordable models.”
“MTC also works with employers to hire, upskill and retain staff, and local participants have told me that their lives have been changed by this program. But the reality is that our employment services are overworked and undersupported by a system that is not set up to support the long-term unemployed or people with complex needs. Around one in five Workforce Australia participants, or about 140,000 people, have been in the system for five years or more, and they are being let down by the 'one size fits all' approach, so we are investing $312.1 million to replace this with three new tailored service streams: a digital stream, a provider-led support stream and an intensive services stream.”
“The Illawarra South Coast Local Jobs and Skills Taskforce, led by local jobs coordinator Andrew Wales, comprises industry leaders, businesses and community representatives who are regularly looking at ways we can better support both businesses and workers, because it's not just workers who are losing out under this system; it's also the businesses, who aren't being linked with the right with workers and with the right skills. Instead, they are being flooded with thousands of applications from jobseekers that they simply cannot assess. Andrew's local jobs program has a range of amazing initiatives to create opportunities for both workers and employers. MTC FutureReady is another local employment service in Wollongong delivering free courses funded by the Australian government to give jobseekers the skills they need to find and retain work.”
“It will also equip students to work in digital, electrical and robotic manufacturing and deliver microskills and microcredentials to upskill our current workers. Our 2026-27 budget continues to deliver that strong backing to employment and workplace relations. We're working to strengthen our employment services system through once-in-a-generation reforms by overhauling Workforce Australia's 'one size fits all' approach, put in place under the former government, and this is very welcome news in the regions. We're so very lucky in the Illawarra to have an experienced and passionate employment sector that is really working hard to support local people into meaningful work and delivering great outcomes.”
“We know it works and we're focusing on the industries we need the most. In my electorate, we've delivered the $2.5 million renewable energy training centre at Wollongong TAFE, bringing renewable energy, education and career engagement programs directly to local students. This is a collaboration with the University of Wollongong through the Energy Futures Skills Centre, another amazing centre that we have invested $10 million in to create the clean energy workforce of the future. The $47 million Illawarra Heavy Industry Manufacturing Centre of Excellence has been jointly funded by the Australian and New South Wales governments. Again located at Wollongong TAFE, this centre will target training in traditional and renewable heavy industry manufacturing for the defence and transport sectors.”
“When it comes to skills, we've seen nearly 300,000 students enrol in free TAFE courses in New South Wales alone, putting them on the path to jobs in nursing, aged care, early childhood, construction and more, and saving them thousands of dollars. Our Key Apprenticeship Program is delivering the tradies that we need now in housing, construction and energy by supporting apprentices with $10,000 incentive payments and supporting their employers with $5,000. As of 30 April this year, nearly 26,000 people have started housing construction apprenticeships, and more than 24,000 have started new energy apprenticeships. The National Centre for Vocational Education Research's recent report shows that 95 per cent of people who complete trade apprenticeships will move into work in these sectors.”
“This budget is focused on helping Australians find secure work, stay in work and build better futures. Labor has always been the party of the worker and we fight hard to deliver fair wages and conditions. We've delivered pay rises to almost 2.7 million of our lowest-paid workers, with yesterday's decision by the Fair Work Commission bringing the minimum wage above $1,000 a week for the very first time. This means that these workers are now more than $12,000 better off every year, thanks to Labor. We've backed pay rises for aged-care and early childhood workers, and our same job, same pay reforms have benefited more than 8,000 people. We've enshrined penalty rates into law and we've ensured more Australian workers are now covered by an award.”
“Women Illawarra received Outstanding Not-for-Profit or Charity for their decades of service supporting equality and education across the region. The Industry Performing Arts Studio was awarded Best New Business for nurturing creative talent. FLW Connect received Best Home-Based Business for professionalism and strong client relationships. Orlane Mortimer of Wollongong Crane Trucks was named Young Business Woman of the Year and Best Small Business, recognised for emerging leadership and dedication within her team. Finally, Active Property Conveyancing received Best Business for professionalism. (Time expired)”
“Nardia Guillaumier of NEG Photography received Outstanding Commitment to the Community for her creativity and genuine care for those that she photographs. Tash Hedges of Wallawa Traffic Group was awarded Outstanding Employee for her reliability and commitment to safety. Brodie Meney of Symbio Wildlife Park was recognised as Outstanding Executive Employee for her dedication to wildlife education and engagement. Always Education received the Outstanding Customer Focus Award for their commitment to empowering young people through supportive learning environments. Dr Meghan Dares of Joint Vision Orthopaedic Group was named Business Woman of the Year and Innovative Business Woman, reflecting her leadership in musculoskeletal care and patient centred approach.”
“It creates opportunities, fosters meaningful connections and encourages leadership across the Illawarra while also reflecting the diversity within our region's business community. I want to say a huge thank you to the amazing Glenda Papac, Suzanne Kent and Dianne Chalk for their commitment over the last 20 years to recognising and empowering women across the Illawarra. You've fostered leadership, innovation and opportunity throughout our community, and we are so very grateful. This year's awards recipients have demonstrated exceptional dedication and made a big impact on our community in their respective fields. Mariana Zurak of Relativity Films was recognised as Champion Networker, known for bringing people together and strengthening creative collaboration.”
“I rise today to recognise the 20th anniversary of Illawarra Women in Business. I recently attended their milestone event, which also marked the 18th Illawarra Women in Business awards. These awards shine a spotlight on the remarkable women in our community who demonstrate drive, determination and passion in their fields. They celebrate not only success but the hard work, resilience and dedication that underpin these achievements. This year's event brought together an inspiring group of business leaders, entrepreneurs and community members united by a shared commitment to excellence and supporting one another. Over the past two decades, Illawarra Women in Business has grown into a respected platform that champions excellence and empowers future generations of women to pursue their ambitions with confidence.”
“I know this one in particular is a really welcome change. This is a big, bold and fair budget. It's a Labor budget at its core, putting fairness first and supporting Australians. I'm proud to be part of the team delivering for the Illawarra and I commend the bill to the House.”
“In March this year, the member for Whitlam, Carol Berry, the member for Gilmore, Fiona Phillips, and I worked very closely with the Minister for Aged Care and Seniors, Sam Rae, to ensure that the federal government made the Illawarra one of its first priority regions to access $115 million under the Aged Care Capital Assistance Program. This will fund projects that can build and open more beds within two years. This is great news, but I know it's not enough. This budget is also investing $3 billion in aged care to deliver 5,000 more aged-care beds every year, to significantly reduce wait times for Support at Home packages and to provide better care for older Australians. At the same time, we've made personal care services like showering and dressing free to help people age in their homes with dignity.”
“These free clinics have been a huge success in Corrimal, in Dapto. We have seen more than 68,000 free visits to these clinics, and I regularly hear positive feedback from people across the Illawarra about their experiences. They are delivering free health care closer to home when it's urgent but not an emergency. They are taking the pressure off hospitals like Wollongong Hospital, where we know the emergency department is already under significant pressure. We are investing in more cheaper medicines for cystic fibrosis, chronic kidney disease, various cancers and more, and we're making the RSV vaccine free for people aged over 75—and that's just to name a few. The Illawarra has a critical shortage of aged-care beds. It's one of the issues that keeps me up at night.”
“So we're investing $654.3 million to expand the use of digital ID to safely verify identity, reduce data storage and improve access to government services online. By 2030, the Australian Public Service will work as a single, unified enterprise to deliver simple, accessible services for people and businesses. This will revolutionise the way that government engages across the country, and will transform the experience that I know so many people have. And these are just a few ways that the budget is supporting business. I want to touch on the massive ongoing investment that this budget is making in health. I talk about this a lot, but it's worthy of another mention here. This budget has $3.5 billion in measures to improve access to health care across the country. Medicare urgent care clinics will become a permanent part of Medicare.”
“We'll better target the research and development tax incentive from 1 July 2028 to unlock $400 million in additional R&D by young firms per year. There's a lot of research and innovation happening right across the Illawarra, and I know these incentives will help local businesses grow and shape the future made in the Illawarra. All up, the budget's productivity package cuts red tape and regulatory costs by over $10 billion. I am particularly excited about our new 'tell us once' approach. I can't tell you how often I hear from businesses and community organisations about their frustrations with filling in a new form with exactly the same information every time they talk to a different department, and sometimes even a different section of the same department. It's a waste of time and energy, and many just simply do not have the resources.”
“Over the next five years, that will deliver around $890 million in cashflow support, save 366,000 hours of recordkeeping and around $32 million a year in compliance costs. Our permanent two-year loss carryback for companies with turnover up to $1 billion will start on 1 July 2026 and will help small businesses to return to profitability faster, give them the confidence to invest earlier and withstand volatility. We're helping startups to grow in their first two years by introducing loss refundability from 1 July 2028, providing a tax refund before they are profitable. We'll expand venture capital incentives from 1 July 2027 to help more innovative firms access the capital they need to scale and create jobs.”
“At the same time, we're reducing red tape for faster approvals and providing new pathways for migrant workers already in Australia to get their existing qualifications and practical trade experience recognised, helping address workforce shortages. We're coming at the housing crisis from every angle to build more homes, give first home buyers a fair go and support renters with stable and affordable homes. Our tax reform is also benefiting millions of small businesses around the country. This budget invests $3.5 billion in new business tax relief to boost investment, increase cash flow and support growth. We're making the $20,000 instant tax asset write-off permanent to give more businesses more certainty to invest.”
“It will tax every asset class more evenly on the real gains made, stop encouraging short-term speculation and encourage longer term investment. The reforms to make our tax system fairer will help 75,000 more homeowners crack into the housing market over the next decade, and that's on top of our five per cent deposit scheme for first home buyers, which has already helped 1,159 people in Cunningham. We also recognise that there are some local barriers to building more homes quickly. That's why we're investing $2 billion in the infrastructure needed to build more homes. Our new local infrastructure fund will see roads, water, power and sewerage built to unlock up to 65,000 homes over 10 years. This includes $500 million reserved just for regional Australia.”
“The number of these trusts has doubled over the past 20 years, once again, disproportionately advantaging people who can use discretionary trusts and disadvantaging Australians living on a wage. And we are not saying that there aren't legitimate reasons to use a trust. There absolutely are. But this system should not be used as a way to simply pay less tax than you otherwise would. A 30 per cent minimum tax will help ensure tax on discretionary trusts is more aligned with tax on wages, and will help to pay for the $250 tax offset for 13 million Australian workers. The changes won't come into effect until 2028, to ensure people have the time to restructure. Are these changes easy? No. Are they necessary? Absolutely, yes. It's the fair thing to do. It is the right thing to do.”
“Inflation remains discounted, so the effective tax rate will be lower than the nominal marginal tax rate. According to Treasury estimates, the average tax rate on gross capital gains will increase from 19.3 per cent to 21.4 per cent by 2036-37. We will also not be taxing your family home. We never have and we never will. And we are not implementing a death tax. I've also heard a lot of talk about discretionary trusts. Around 90 per cent of trust wealth is held by the wealthiest 10 per cent of households. Using a discretionary trust helps those wealthiest 10 per cent to manage their tax affairs in ways that are simply not available to most Australians.”
“From 1 July 2027, we're going to discount capital gains tax based on actual inflation and will apply a minimum 30 per cent tax to real gains to keep them more in line with the rate paid by an average worker. Some people will be better off, and people receiving means tested income support payments, like the age pension, will be exempt from the minimum rate. These changes will not impact the properties you already own. Importantly, if you buy a new property, you can negatively gear that property just like you can now, and you can make a choice about whether to use the old or new capital gains tax discount system. We want people to buy new homes, and our changes incentivise that. As I mentioned, there has been a lot of disappointing misinformation about what these changes mean. We are not taxing 40 per cent on real gains.”
“For some assets, particularly high-growth assets, that discount massively overcompensated for inflation, but some slower growth assets were instead taxed too harshly. What has housing been since 1999? A very high growth asset. Combine this with negative gearing. When your rental income is less than your property expenses, these losses reduce your taxable income, meaning that if you spend more on your property you reduce your overall tax burden. So investors pay less tax on high-growth property gains than they might on slower growing assets, and they can reduce their overall tax burden if they spend more on housing than they receive in rent. Overall, it gives them more money to spend. This is a system tipped out of balance. How are we fixing it?”
“We need to make it more affordable and more attractive to buy new homes that add to our housing stock and help to take the pressure off the existing housing market. This means more homes for renters. It means more affordable homes for first home buyers. It means a rebalance in a system that rewards wealth. What are we actually doing? When you sell an asset, you should only have to pay tax on the real gains that you have made, not on the inflation over the time you have held the asset. That's the purpose of the capital gains tax discount. When the system changed in 1999, instead of calculating the actual inflation of an asset, an arbitrary 50 per cent discount was calculated. This was billed as a simpler alternative, but it has helped make a two-class system when it comes to assets.”
“Capital gains tax, combined with negative gearing, makes it harder for first home buyers to buy a home. With the way the system is set up, investment into existing property is encouraged, and that investment is putting up prices and locking out first home buyers. It's also pulling investment away from other productive parts of the economy. This also impacts families and Australians who need to move for a whole range of reasons—those who are looking to get back into the market after a relationship breakdown or older Australians on lower incomes wanting to make a change for retirement and many more. Investors have a tax system on their side, which means they can spend more than those who don't.”
“Housing affordability is one of the biggest challenges for our community right now. Just to be clear, this crisis is not just impacting young people, but we do see them being disproportionately disadvantaged when it comes to cracking into the housing market for the first time. This is something that worries them, and it is something that worries their parents as well. I've heard too many stories of parents who are delaying their own retirement because they are still supporting their adult children at home. People want to be able to see their kids get the same leg-up that they did, and, in so many parts of our society, this just isn't the case. No-one wants to be the generation that leaves their kids worse off than they were. Let's talk about the capital gains tax and negative gearing for a moment as they relate to housing.”
“But the community now understands more acutely than ever that these changes must happen, and the time is now. According to the 2023 Intergenerational r eport , over the next 40 years the rate of people participating in paid work is expected to decline from 66.6 per cent to 63.8 per cent. At the same time, the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple, and the number of centenarians is expected to increase sixfold. If we don't take action now, we simply won't have the supports we need to deal with this shift. For too long, our tax system has been stacked against working Australians. It has incentivised investment in housing as a wealth generator, and it has given tax breaks to people using trusts and other mechanisms to reduce their tax burden unfairly.”
“That's what it means to lead the country to a better and fairer future. We're focused on helping people in our community to deal with cost-of-living pressures and the uncertainty of the war in the Middle East. We're building a more resilient economy and putting money back into the pockets of Australians. It tackles some long overdue reform. It's no surprise that those who like the system as it is—stacked against younger generations and working Australians—are working hard to spread misinformation and fear. When things are new or complex, opponents unfortunately use this as an opportunity to spread mis- and disinformation. I've seen this in the offshore wind debate, and we've seen it for decades around immigration and refugees. We experienced it around these very same issues back in 2019.”
“I rise today to speak on the Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027 and related bills. I could not be prouder of the budget that my good friend the Treasurer has put forward. What the Treasurer has put together speaks to the heart of what it means to be a Labor government. It focuses on equity, on rebalancing the weights of the generations and on helping ordinary Australians. This budget is the most important and fair budget in decades. It is big and it is bold and it tackles long overdue reform to our tax system that will fundamentally change the future for future generations. This has certainly not been easy, but government isn't easy. For those of us who genuinely care about people, like I know the Treasurer and the Prime Minister do, these decisions are really tough, and that is the hard work of government.”
“Thank you, Deputy Speaker, and I would also like to thank you for all of the work that you have done over so many years for children with disabilities, including for my friend Vicki and her beautiful daughter, Melissa, who is now 37 years old. Can you believe it?”