❓ Treasurer Ripper identifies the Howard government's failure to maintain low interest rates as a significant threat to WA family budgets, citing rising mortgage repayments and broken promises.
AnsweredQoN 517Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
FAMILY BUDGETS
Can the Treasurer inform the house of any threats to family budgets in Western Australia? Mr E.S. RIPPER
Can the Treasurer inform the house of any threats to family budgets in Western Australia? Mr E.S. RIPPER
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Albany for the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr E.S. RIPPER replied: I thank the member for Albany for the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
I thank the member for Albany for the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
“Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low?
“Who do you trust to keep interest rates low?
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr E.S. RIPPER replied: I thank the member for Albany for the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
I thank the member for Albany for the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Murdoch and the member for Moore. Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr T. Buswell : Tell us about your big night in 2020. The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The SPEAKER : I call to order the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr E.S. RIPPER : I will come to the member for Vasse later. The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The big threat to family budgets at the moment is the Howard government’s failure to honour its election promise to keep interest rates at record lows. Members opposite sneer. They should wait until they hear some of the figures showing the impact that the failure to honour that promise is inflicting upon families. Let us remind ourselves about what John Howard told voters in 2004. Would not members opposite like to hear what he said? He said - “This election, ladies and gentlemen, will be about trust,“ . . . “Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low? That is what John Howard said, and he followed it up with television advertisements that promised to keep interest rates at record lows. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
“Who do you trust to keep the economy strong, and protect family living standards? “Who do you trust to keep interest rates low?
“Who do you trust to keep interest rates low?
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
The SPEAKER : I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order for the third time. Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
Mr E.S. RIPPER : Many families were deceived. They drew up their financial plans and made their commitments because they believed that promise. Since that promise, there have been three interest rate rises, and the Governor of the Reserve Bank is warning us that a fourth rise is imminent. That will be a significant burden on family budgets. The opposition members do not appear to care about it. At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
At the time of the last federal poll, a bit over two years ago, the average home loan was $168 900 and the typical repayment cost was about $13 552 a year. If we have the fourth interest rate increase that the Reserve Bank is warning us about, repayments on the average loan will have risen by $1 300 to $14 942 a year. The typical size of a family home loan has increased. It is now $208 300 in Western Australia, and another interest rate rise would take repayments on that loan to $1 535 a month. On an annual basis, the repayments on that loan would be $18 428. What is the federal government’s defence? Its defence is that interest rates were higher in the early 1990s. The truth of the situation is that households today are paying a higher proportion of their income in interest repayments. The average mortgage interest repayment over the life of the Howard government is 7.9 per cent of household income; it was seven per cent under the Labor governments that Mr Howard likes to criticise. The fact is that John Howard and Peter Costello have failed to deliver on their promise - they have not delivered to farmers either - and because they have failed to deliver on that promise they are punishing Australian families, and Western Australian families in particular. This whole episode shows how worthless a Liberal pledge is.
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