Page 455 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 19 February 2020
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losers. That is why we have 7.7 per cent of the total population of the ACT living in poverty, about one in 12. So, when you are driving around Canberra, every twelfth house is a family living in poverty.
Unlike many other cities and other jurisdictions, the geography and demography do not always match up in the ACT. You do not necessarily have whole regions or whole suburbs of disadvantaged like you might in some other cities. That means that so much of the disadvantage, so much of the poverty, is hidden. When it is hidden, it is so easy to be out of mind, because it is out of sight. That is why it is so important for people in this place to stand up for all these people who do not have a voice, all these people who are too proud to say that they are struggling, all these people who are being shamed by their community or by their government. We have to stand up for these people. There is an imperative that we do that.
I mentioned the cost of housing in the ACT. House rents at $580 a week is the median in the ACT, which means it takes $1,200 a fortnight after tax to pay for rent. It is staggering that people pay this, because they have to. I repeat: $1,200 a fortnight after tax for housing in this city. That is what you get after 19 years of Labor. That is what you get after two decades of promises that never quite eventuate.
We must bring down the cost of living in this city. The Canberra Liberals are proud of our commitment to bring down the cost of living in this city. We believe it is incumbent upon us, as the Opposition, and of a competing party in this election year to present the alternative. That alternative is making sure that there is affordable housing in this city, making sure that there are fewer people living in poverty, making sure that the kids of today can afford to live in this city tomorrow.
As Mr Stanhope has said, Labor has gone from representing the bottom two quintiles to representing the top two quintiles. Labor simply does not care. In many ways, I think Labor members are ashamed of their working-class base or they are taking those people for granted. Right across Canberra, there would be thousands of people weighing up whether Labor has served them well since 2001, and what is the trajectory? Is the trajectory good or is it bad?
I think there would be very few people who would think that Labor members are somehow going to turn the ship around and suddenly start caring for all these people that they had forgotten about. The Canberra Liberals are committed to bringing down the cost of living for everyone in the ACT and we will do everything we can to ensure that this is achieved.
MR BARR (Kurrajong—Chief Minister, Treasurer, Minister for Social Inclusion and Equality, Minister for Tertiary Education, Minister for Tourism and Special Events and Minister for Trade, Industry and Investment) (10.29): I move the amendment circulated in my name:
Omit all text after “(1) notes”, substitute:
“(a) that Canberrans enjoy a quality standard of living due to earning the highest median incomes in the country, access to free healthcare, free education, and well-planned and delivered infrastructure;
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