Anthony Albanese MP, Federal Member for Grayndler, has expressed his concern at the effect of this week’s interest rates rise on the residents of Grayndler.

Mr Albanese said, “This is the sixth consecutive rise in official interest rates since 2002. Interest rates have now gone up 11 times under the Howard Government.”

“For a family with a mortgage of $200,000, the monthly repayment on their mortgage will go up by $32 a month or $384 a year. A family with a $400,000 mortgage will be $65 a month or $780 a year worse off,” said Mr Albanese.

“People in this area are already struggling to balance their mortgages with the cost of childcare, petrol prices, and other day-to-day expenses. From today, they will also be slugged with an additional 3% increase in the price of fresh produce such as milk, yoghurt and juice, as a knock-on effect of petrol prices.”

“Howard and Costello’s “money grows on trees” attitude shows how out-of-touch they are with ordinary Australians,” said Mr Albanese.

“Grayndler residents cannot afford another rise in interest rates, and they cannot afford John Howard’s mismanagement of the Australian economy,” he concluded.