Helping with the cost of living

The world’s thrown a lot of challenges at Australia over the last few years. We’re working hard to take the pressure off.

Tax cuts for every taxpayer

We’ve given every Australian taxpayer a tax cut to help with the cost of living. 

The former Government's tax cuts left out people earning $45,000 or less. We’ve made sure no one gets left behind.

That means more money in your pocket, every pay day.

And we’ll keep building on our cost of living relief, with another tax cut next year and the year after for every Australian taxpayer.

Energy bill relief 

Energy prices have spiked around the world.

We’ve taken action to protect Australians from the worst of it, rolling out $300 off energy bills for every household and $325 for small businesses.

We’re not stopping there. We’ll take another $150 off power bills this year for every household and for small businesses.

Free TAFE

Free TAFE is changing lives. More than 600,000 Australians have enrolled in courses. 

And we’re making free TAFE permanent.

Whether it’s child care or cybersecurity, accounting or aged care – with free TAFE, you can train for the job you want without worrying about the cost.

Uni students

Going to uni should open up opportunities, not leave you with a lifetime of debt.

That’s why we cut $3 billion in student debt for 3 million Australians, and made sure loans never grow faster than wages into the future. Next, we’ll wipe a further 20% off student debt. 

We’ve also set up the new Commonwealth Prac Payment to help students with the cost of living. That means if you’re studying to be a teacher, nurse, midwife or social worker, you can get paid while doing your placement.

Jobs and pay rises for workers

Real wages are growing again. And with our tax cuts, Australians are keeping more of what they earn. 

We’ve delivered historic pay rises for child care and aged care workers, helping bring the gender pay gap to its lowest level on record.

We’ve backed three pay rises in a row for 2.6 million minimum and award wage workers. 

And more than 1.1 million jobs have been created since we came to government. That’s more jobs created in one term of government than ever before.

Child care

We want every child to get the best start in life, without costs getting in the way. 

That’s why we made child care cheaper, saving families thousands of dollars a year. And we will also guarantee three days of child care subsidy.

Supporting parents

More support, more financial security and more flexibility for parents.

That’s what we’re delivering by extending paid parental leave to six months.

And starting this year, we’ll add super to government paid parental leave – because it’s the fair thing to do.

Single parents make sacrifices and work so hard to give their kids a better life.

We've expanded access to the single parent payment, boosting support for around 97,000 single parents by hundreds of dollars a fortnight.

Responsible economic management

When we came to government, inflation was rising, real wages were falling, and people were doing it tough. We made a choice to turn things around without leaving people behind.

Now, inflation is coming down. Real wages have risen five quarters in a row. Interest rates have started to fall. We’ve delivered back-to-back budget surpluses for the first time in nearly two decades. And we’ve kept unemployment low and over a million new jobs have been created.

The world has thrown a lot of challenges at Australia, but our economy is turning the corner.

Strengthening Medicare

Getting healthcare should rely on your Medicare card, not your credit card. We’re strengthening Medicare to make that a reality.

Making it easier and cheaper to see a doctor

When you’re sick, seeing a doctor shouldn’t be a struggle.

That’s why we’ll make the biggest boost to Medicare ever, so you’ll be able to see the GP for free.

Our massive investments in health are already helping 11 million pensioners, concession card holders and families get bulk billed. 

And we’ve opened 87 free Medicare Urgent Care Clinics across Australia. They open early and close late, so you can get the care you need, when you need it.

Cheaper medicine

You should be able to get the medicine you need, without worrying about the cost. 
 
That’s why we reduced the maximum amount you’ll pay to $31.60 and made sure that concession card holders pay no more than $7.70. And many Australians can now get twice the medication for the cost of a single prescription.
 
We’ve also added many new medicines to the PBS for conditions like breast, prostate and lung cancer, so you pay less at the pharmacy. Without subsidy, a course of treatment could cost more than $100,000 – now it will cost no more than $31.60 per script.

And we’ll keep building, making medicine even cheaper so the most you'll pay is just $25 a script.

Women’s health

Too often, women’s health hasn’t been taken seriously. We’re changing that with an investment of more than half a billion dollars. 
 
We will make new contraceptive pills cheaper, fund more free GP appointments for long term contraceptives like IUDs, and boost support for women experiencing menopause.
 
We’ve already opened 22 new endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics to help women get treatment sooner. And now we’ll open 11 more.

Mental health

Stronger Medicare means better access to mental health services across Australia.
 
We’re setting up a network of 61 free, walk-in adult Medicare Mental Health Centres across Australia. 
 
We have grown the headspace network to 174 services across the country, delivering support to young Australians.
 
And we’re establishing a new National Early Intervention Service, so people can access free advice and mental health support over the phone or online.

Hospitals

Every Australian deserves quality healthcare when they need it most. That’s why we’re boosting hospital funding by $1.7 billion – delivering more money for public hospitals in every state and territory. 
 
Our plan will help to cut waiting lists, reduce wait times and manage ramping.

Getting you into a home of your own

We’re making it easier to buy, better to rent, and we’re building more homes for Australians.

Making it easier to buy 

Too many Australians feel like they’ve worked hard and done all the right things, but still can’t get a deposit together.
 
That’s why we’ve helped over 150,000 first home buyers with deposits of 5 per cent or less. Getting Australians into a home of their own sooner – while saving tens of thousands on Lenders’ Mortgage Insurance.
 
And there’s more to come. We introduced Help to Buy so working Australians can get into a place of their own with a deposit as low as just 2 per cent, and much lower mortgage repayments.

Making it better to rent

When you’re renting, you should be able to do the things that turn a house into a home.
 
We've been working with the states to make renting fairer. As a result, most states have now banned ‘no grounds’ evictions, limited rent increases to once per year and set minimum rental standards. And we’ve introduced incentives to create more long-term leases. 
 
We’ve also delivered back-to-back increases in Rent Assistance, making it 45 per cent higher for a million households.

Building more homes 

We know the long-term fix for housing is building more homes. 
 
That’s why we’re starting the largest home build in Australian history, building 1.2 million homes in five years, including 55,000 social and affordable homes through initiatives like our Housing Australia Future Fund. 
 
To get this done, we’re building more infrastructure and cutting red tape. We’re training more tradies with Free TAFE and supporting apprentices to build houses with a new $10,000 incentive.

Building Australia’s future

We’ve been focused on helping with the cost of living now, while setting Australia up for the future.

Investing in education

Education changes lives, and it can build a stronger future.

We will fully fund every school in Australia - delivering the biggest investment in school education in a generation.

Every child deserves a great education, no matter their background or postcode. That’s why we’re making sure schools have the resources they need to give every student the best start in life.

We’re investing in education at every stage - from our child care investments for our littlest Australians through to TAFE and universities.

This is about investing in the future - because when we support education, we strengthen our economy, our communities, and our country.

Infrastructure 

We’re making Australia’s cities, suburbs and regions even better places to live.

Across the country, we’re building roads and rail to connect communities and get you home sooner and safer. 

And we’re building essential infrastructure for new homes, with an investment to build the water, power and roads communities need.

A future made in Australia

Making more things in Australia will create secure jobs and boost the economy. 

We’ve set up the National Reconstruction Fund to invest in local manufacturing. We’re securing the future of Australian-made steel and aluminum, and ensuring our world-leading resources sector is seizing a new generation of opportunities in critical minerals.

And we’re investing to deliver a new generation of manufacturing jobs in our suburbs and regions, building clean energy technology like solar panels and batteries here.

Cheap, clean energy

Australians voted for action on climate change and the thousands of renewable energy jobs it will create. 

After a decade of delay and denial from Peter Dutton’s Liberals, we set a net zero target in law and are cutting emissions by 43% by 2030.

We’re driving our grid to 82% renewables by 2030. Already, we've approved enough renewables to power nearly every home in Australia.

We're also expanding EV charging, cutting energy costs for households and businesses, and ensuring communities benefit from the shift to a low-carbon economy. 

This isn’t just about reducing emissions - it’s about a stronger, more sustainable future for all Australians.

Restoring Australia’s place in the world

Australia is back at the table internationally. We’ve repaired key relationships, strengthened our standing in the region and our leadership on climate action.

We’ve restored and expanded trade, secured new economic partnerships, and unlocked billions in exports -  supporting Australian jobs and businesses. We’ve deepened security ties with key regional partners and stepped up our engagement in the Pacific and Southeast Asia.

On the world stage, we stand up for Australia and for our values: supporting global stability, defending peace and sovereignty and delivering humanitarian aid. We’re investing in our relationships and investing in our capabilities.

Under our leadership, Australia isn’t just back at the table, we’re helping shape the future.