What we’re doing for Cost of Living

Every Australian taxpayer will get a tax cut next year and the year after, on top of the tax cuts we delivered last year. That means more money in your pocket, with an average tax cut of over $2,500 each year when fully implemented.

That’s not all. This year we’ll take another $150 off power bills for every household and around one million small businesses. That’s on top of the $300 we already knocked off power bills, taking pressure off household budgets.

Helping with the cost of living is our top priority and we’ll keep working to help Australians get ahead.

Health

• Announced a re-elected Albanese Government will deliver the biggest ever boost to Medicare so more Australians can see a GP for free.

• The 2025 Budget includes $8.4 billion over five years to expand bulk billing access and introduce a new Bulk Billing Practice Incentive Program.

• Delivering cheaper medicines – making hundreds of common medicines cheaper, by allowing millions of Australians to buy two months’ worth of medicine for the price of a single prescription.

• Continued investment through the PBS in 2025 Budget to reduce out-of-pocket medicine costs – capping them at $25 a script and $7.70 for concession card holders.

• Tripled the bulk billing incentive, restoring bulk billing for people who need to see their GP most often.

Education

• Announced a re-elected Labor Government will cut student debt by 20%, raise the repayment threshold and lower repayment rates.

• The 2025 Budget delivers a 20% reduction in HELP and student loan debts, wiping $19 billion from the system, and raises the repayment threshold to $67,000 from 2025–26.

• Delivered HECS relief, and making sure that student debt never grows faster than wages.

• Delivering 600,000 Free TAFE places – helping Australians to gain skills and get ahead, and making Free TAFE permanent.

• Establishing a Commonwealth Prac Payment, so Australians studying to be a teacher, a nurse, a midwife or a social worker can get paid while on prac.

Consumer Protection

• Making sure Australians are getting a fair deal at the checkout and cracking down on supermarkets doing the wrong thing. By strengthening competition and accountability in the sector, we will secure fairer prices.

• A better deal for consumers, including cracking down on unfair card surcharges, banning unfair trading practices such as ‘subscription traps’ and dynamic pricing, a new airline watchdog, and overseeing rules for refunds on flights that are disrupted or delayed.

• The 2025 Budget reinforces consumer protections, supporting ACCC action and legislation to target predatory pricing and unfair practices.

Tax & Wages

• Delivered a tax cut for every Australian taxpayer – not just some. So people keep more of what they earn.

• Further tax cuts announced in the 2025 Budget: from 1 July 2026, the tax rate on incomes $18,201–$45,000 will drop to 15%, and to 14% from 2027 — saving Australians up to $536 a year.

• Delivered real wage increases for Australian workers after wages were deliberately kept low by the former Coalition Government.

• Expanding Paid Parental Leave to 26 weeks – or 6 months – by 2026 and adding superannuation to government paid parental leave.

Health

Housing

• Increased Rent Assistance by over 40 per cent.

• Further increases to Commonwealth Rent Assistance and a $1.5 billion housing infrastructure package to increase supply.

• Starting the biggest housing build in Australia’s history by investing $32 billion in housing – 6 times more than the Liberals budgeted over a whole decade.

• Building 55,000 social and affordable homes – 5 times more than the Liberals built over a whole decade. The Liberals and the Greens worked together to delay this investment.

• Over $4.5 billion to help states build infrastructure – like roads and water – so more homes can be built sooner, and incentivise states to cut red tape and build more homes.

• Introducing a 2-year ban on foreign investors buying existing homes.

Jobs & Support Payments

• Increased JobSeeker, Youth Allowance and other income support payments. Expanded eligibility for the higher rate of JobSeeker Payment for older Australians, and individuals with a partial capacity to work between zero and 14 hours per week.

• Expanded the single parenting payment to help single parents balance caring responsibilities and work.

Energy & Environment

• More loans for households to access rooftop solar and batteries to reduce energy bills.

Digital & Infrastructure

• Providing up to 30,000 families with free broadband until the end of 2028, and keeping the NBN public and affordable.

Sport & Culture

• Legislating protections to keep key sporting events accessible on free to air TV.