Greens candidate for Richmond Mandy Nolan said Labor’s Budget will do little to support people in the Northern Rivers struggling with the cost of living and housing crises.

“Labor talks a big game on climate change and cost of living but this Budget shows it’s not prepared to put its money where its mouth is. They’re all spin, no substance.”

“The rental and housing crisis is breaking people, but Labor’s choosing instead to deliver a band-aid Budget that provides little substantive help. The government’s $9.3 billion surplus could fund a rent freeze, put mental health into Medicare, or give every Australian in poverty over $3000 in cost-of-living support, but instead they’ve chosen to crow over a surplus, while people are in need.”

“There’s hardly anything in Labor’s Budget  to genuinely address the housing crisis. They’ve given their developer and corporate mates $1.9bn for privatised community housing, rather than just building public housing that would provide safe, affordable homes for Australians. Meanwhile Labor is funnelling $54 billion in subsidies and tax breaks to the fossil fuel industry - five times as much as they’re spending on housing.”

“The Northern Rivers is the most climate vulnerable region in the country, and floods and climate damage is fuelling our region’s housing crisis. Our Labor incumbent has stood by silently, allowing the government to sign a cheque for coal and gas corporations to create more floods, fires and droughts. We need a government that makes its climate and economic policy based on conversations at the door, not dirty political donations behind closed doors.”