Senator McKENZIE (Victoria—Leader of the Nationals in the Senate) (12:22): Let's be very, very clear about what's happened over the break. It's very, very clear what's happened. The Labor Party voted for stage 1, 2 and 3 of a very carefully calibrated tax package a few years ago. They voted for it. They took it to the election. They promised over a hundred times not to trash it. The PM campaigned on trust: 'Trust me; I won't trash it.' What has happened over the break? If they fervently believed this was a cost-of-living measure that needed to happen for Australians doing it tough, why wasn't it part of their October budget in 2022? Why wasn't it part of their May budget in 2023? Why wasn't it part of their MYEFO considerations at the end of last year? What's the only thing that's changed? Australians have been struggling with cost of living because of this government for 18 months. As Senator Birmingham made very, very clear, Australian households are 8,000 bucks worse off as a result. Some $24,000 a year in additional mortgage payments have to be found by the average mortgage holder in this country. Why? It's because this government can't get the fundamentals of economic management right. They can't get their spending under control. They can't lift productivity. So we have had inflation higher than it needs to be and prices going up more than people's wages. That is not Australian small businesses' fault. It is your government's fault because you cannot get your own spending under control and get inflation under control. What is the only thing that's changed since two budgets and a MYEFO? They could have brought this forward. They could have done their triple-pike backflip. What would it be, Senator Birmingham? What would it be? Oh, I know! A Dunkley by-election. The Prime Minister has trashed his reputation to bribe voters in a by-election. That's the only reason. And why? It's because they did the internal polling. They went: 'Mate, we're going to have to do something pretty drastic here. They don't believe us. They don't trust us. They know we're not on their team. They know we've been focused on a voice referendum that no-one voted for. We spent 450 million bucks on that. How do we win their trust back? I know: we'll lie to them.' The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, withdraw. Senator McKENZIE: I withdraw. 'We will completely trash and tear up our previous commitments, our previous voting records, because you know what? We disrespect Australians so much. They'll take the money and forget we backflipped and lied to them.' The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, withdraw. Senator McKENZIE: I withdraw. They have actually chosen to bet on the fact that Australians don't vote on character, that Australians don't care about the character of their Prime Minister and their government. That's what they're backing. But I tell you what: Australians love to keep more of their hard-earned cash rather than give it to the government. Every day of the week, Australians, when you ask them that question in a poll, on the street or at an election, will say: 'Thank you. I work pretty hard for my money. I want to keep more of it so I can spend it on the things that my family and I need to spend it on.' So, yes, two-thirds of Australians might think that this is a good idea by the government. But I tell you what 100 per cent of Australians don't like: being lied to. They hate being lied to. And that's exactly what this government has done. So here we are, the first day of parliament—another day, another broken promise by Anthony Albanese's government, counting on the fact that Australians will forget the betrayal. 'Fake it till you make it' was their proposition heading into the last election. And it turns out they did fake it, they made it and now they've exposed themselves as the absolute fakes that they are because they've betrayed themselves. If they really believed that this was the policy Australians needed, and they really believed that this was the policy that the economics needed to be achieved, then it should have been in MYEFO. It should have been in your budget, but you're too distracted by your own ideology. You say Australians are going to feel it. They're not. They are not buying what you're selling, and if we went to any kitchen table in the country they would know you don't have their backs. They know you've lied to them, and they're going to make you pay. (Time expired) The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie! Senator McKenzie: I withdraw.