Question Time

Cost of Living

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS (Black—Leader of the Opposition) (14:04): My question is to the Premier. Is the Premier committed to easing the cost-of-living burden in South Australia and, if so, when will South Australians benefit from this relief? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: The Reserve Bank has lifted interest rates again, to 3.6 per cent, the 10^th consecutive increase, with households paying at least an extra $1,000 each month on the average mortgage. South Australians are also dealing with the highest inflation rate and the lowest real wage growth in the country.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (14:04): I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question because it is certainly a topic of discussion, I think, around every household table throughout the nation at the moment, and that's the cost-of-living crisis that many families are enduring. It's not just a function of rising interest rates, although that is central to it; it's also the rising costs we see around the place, everything from filling up the car with petrol to household groceries or basic services. It's a genuine issue. So I appreciate the question.

There are a number of things that the government is doing to confront the challenge. We are unapologetic about having a rather deliberate focus on ensuring that the government resources that we allocate to the task are orientated to those people in our community who need them most. I think all of us would accept, or certainly reasonable people would accept, that government is not in a position to provide money to everybody, so where we are retaining the ability to do so we should do it for the people who are most vulnerable in our community.

Top of mind, of course, for us are those people who are on particularly low incomes or fixed incomes, such as pensioners for instance, as those who need to be in receipt of support. The best example of the government responding to that is through the doubling of the Cost of Living Concession. That's a policy that we took to the state election. It included an extra $39.3 million to help 220,000 households across the state. That increase to the Cost of Living Concession is a big increase. That's, like I said, a doubling. It's not insignificant.

The government is now, on the back of that effort—and we know the positive impact that it had in the community—turning our mind to what else we can do in this year's state budget, particularly in the context of energy prices. We are very aware of the fact that energy prices are escalating, or are set to escalate, at a dramatic rate in the second half of this year. It is something that the Treasurer and I have been in active discussions about, including with the federal government.

So there is the doubling of the Cost of Living Concession. We are turning our mind to what we can do in terms of energy concessions and engaging with the commonwealth there, but sometimes it's also the little things that can make a difference. That is why, earlier this year, the government honoured—no, not earlier this year, but it was in fact last year that the government honoured its commitment to make public transport free for all people with Seniors Cards, all of the time. That was something that was restricted previously to certain times of the day. We saw the value of making that available to everyone all of the time, to those who have a Seniors Card.

On top of that, the government has made a number of announcements in respect to the housing crisis, which of course represents a big cost to a lot of people around the community. Yesterday, I furnished the house with information regarding the big change in public policy that we have made, as a government, around public housing stock, but there is also assistance that we have provided to those who are private renters within the market, to better accord for their interests than what is currently the case in a market that is so incredibly tight.

We have boosted funding for Foodbank, for food security. Of course, we have also honoured the commitment that was a bipartisan one in the lead-up to the state election, regarding providing assistance to people with a School Card in South Australia. These are practical, real-world examples of how this government is acknowledging the challenge around the cost of living. We have absolutely been making a contribution towards that, using the resources of the state, with an unapologetic focus on those who need it most.