Wednesday 29 April 2026

Transcript - Press conference, Melbourne

Topic: CPI Data

E&OE

The Hon Tim Wilson

Off the back of inflation data today from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, it's confirmed what Australians are living right now. Everyday Australians are struggling under the cost of household pressure in the economy labor built. Higher inflation is not a bug of the economy labor built, it is a design feature. And we have a situation now where everyday Australians are falling further behind, they're experiencing higher costs than their mortgages and higher costs at the supermarket. Australia has been left vulnerable to international shocks but if the Iran conflict ended today, it would not stop the underlying inflation problem that Australia is presently experiencing. The Treasurer likes to draw international comparisons. Australia gets the gold medal amongst major advanced economies for inflation. Our inflation is 1.3 percentage points higher than the nearest major advanced economy in the United Kingdom or the United States. The jump inflation seen today is the largest of any major advanced economic. The government wants to blame international factors and the government will blame international in fact is all they like. But the problem with inflation is homegrown, it existed before the Iran crisis, and if the Iran Crisis ends, Australia will continue to have an underlying inflation problem.

Reporter: Um, Jim Chalmers has just started speaking, he described you as a karaoke clown and seems to be incapable of getting anything right. What do you have to say about the Treasurer's comments?

Tim Wilson MP: The Treasurer himself has overspent by $223 billion and has completely got his own budget wrong under his... Treasurer, he is somebody who has seen inflation persist against the broader trends internationally. I think he needs to have a good harm look himself. If he wants a song playlist, the best one to describe a treasuer who takes from young Australians who want to get their first foothold on the ladder of opportunity and denies them that privilege as they seem to be flagging the leader of the budget, the song that comes to mind for him is smooth criminal.

Tim Wilson MP: The government needs to stop pouring petrol on the inflation fire because they are the core problem around what is driving underlying inflation and the pressure that Australian households are experiencing right now. Until the government gets inflation under control by stopping the spending, continuing to borrow from the future to spend today, Australians will continue to feel the pressure from household inflation at the supermarket.

Reporter: In terms of cutting fuel excess, do you think that was a good move from the government?

Tim Wilson MP: Well we flagged earlier the pathway for reducing excise, but we provided inflationary offsets because we understood how serious the inflation crisis is under the economy later built.

Reporter: Where to from here then? What needs to actually happen to...
Tim Wilson MP: In two weeks time the government is going to hand down its federal budget and unless they seriously address the problem of pouring petrol in the inflation fire, Australia's will continue to experience the problem underlying inflation. If the Iran conflict ended today, you would still see persistent inflation in this country because of the economic model that Labor built which continues to put pressure on inflation.

Reporter: Do you think we need to be looking at helping mortgage holders as well? Obviously it's likely that we will see another rate rise now.

Tim Wilson MP: Well, the best way to help households is to stop pouring debt petrol in the inflation fire and take the pressure off households. Instead, Jim Chalmers continues to borrow from the future, spend today and put pressure on the inflation. If I could think of another song that the treasurer, a homegrown inflation problem, it would be take the pressure down, Jim, because that's the problem Australians are feeling from inflation.

Reporter: ...been any one-off payments from all you told us or it does just come down to the government, better looking at these measures overall.

Tim Wilson MP: Well the government needs to stop pouring debt petrol on the inflation fire and it does that by making sure that it cuts out the fraud and the corruption in public services as they have overseen a massive explosion over and they are not focusing where they need to be on reducing the costs to Australian households every time they spend money they do in a profligate way without any real mindfulness of the consequences and how it's fuelling inflation.

Reporter: In terms of, I'll just briefly ask you on the Nepean election. Obviously this weekend, are you frightened about the rise that we are seeing in One Nation? Obviously then there's the Farrer election as well. But this weekend for Nepean, do you think that people are going to start turning towards One Nation rather than the major parties?

Tim Wilson MP: Well, there will always be clickbait candidates in any election that are focused on drawing attention themselves rather than delivering for communities. All I'll say is that the best pathway for advancing the interest of the people of Nepean and Farrer in the state and national conversation is to vote Liberal. Every time you vote for clickbait candidate, all it leads to is strengthening the hand of Jacinta Allen and Anthony Albanese.

Reporter: Do you think they are clickbait candidates though? The polls are showing that there's a lot of Australians that are in support of One Nation.

Tim Wilson MP: Doesn't change my view.

Reporter: So you think that they are just clickbait candidates? Do you think they have any real policies to put forward? People are turning towards them.

Tim Wilson MP: Well, at the end of the day we have an election, I'm not going to prejudge any election, but I would encourage people to vote Liberal in the Nepean and in Farrer because they provide the best pathway forward to have influence as part of a national conversation. A vote for any clickbait candidate strengthens the hands of Jacinta Allen and Anthony Albanese. Thank you. Good.