Australians are about to see a sweep of cost-of-living measures roll out from Tuesday, 1 July, with the Treasurer calling it a coordinated effort to provide “responsible help” at a time when household budgets are still under strain.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers, speaking in Brisbane on Wednesday, said the timing couldn’t be more crucial. “We know that people are still under pressure,” he said, even as inflation figures point to a more stable economic footing. “That’s why from next Tuesday a whole raft of new cost-of-living measures will be rolled out.”
Those changes include a rise in the minimum wage, longer paid parental leave, the application of superannuation to that leave, and an increase in the super guarantee to 12 per cent. In addition, apprentices in the construction sector will receive new incentives, and energy rebates will continue for another six months, providing an extra $150 in relief to households in the second half of the year.
Chalmers said, “We’ve made a hell of a lot of progress in the fight against inflation together as Australians,” noting that headline inflation now sits at 2.1 per cent and trimmed mean at 2.4 per cent—the lowest levels since early 2021. He added that for the first time since monthly records began, inflation has been within the Reserve Bank’s target range for six consecutive months.
But despite that progress, he was careful not to claim victory. “I’m reluctant to say it’s mission accomplished,” he said, “because we know that people are still doing it tough.”
The measures taking effect from 1 July are designed to provide some breathing space while the economy transitions from crisis response to longer-term reform. “This is more important than ever, that we’ve made this progress on inflation and we’re helping with the cost of living in an environment of extreme global economic uncertainty,” he said. “It is a source of considerable pride as Australians that we’ve made this progress at the same time as keeping unemployment low, with real wages growing again and the economy still ticking over.”
He pointed out that few countries had managed the same balancing act. “There’s no major advanced economy that has inflation in the low 2s at the same time as we’ve got unemployment in the low 4s and we’ve had three years of continuous economic growth,” he said.
Looking ahead, Chalmers flagged an economic reform roundtable in Canberra in August. “This substantial and sustained progress on inflation means that we can focus even more substantially on some of those bigger, longer term structural challenges in the economy,” he said. “That’s my focus, and it’s also the focus of the economic reform roundtable.”
He repeated his call for cooperation on reform: “The best way to determine the next steps in our economy and when it comes to economic reform is to do that together.”
While much of the focus was on domestic pressures, Chalmers also warned about external risks. He cited trade tensions, instability in the Middle East, uncertainty in Eastern Europe and a slowing Chinese economy as challenges Australia must continue to navigate. “The Australian economy is better prepared and better placed than most economies around the world to deal with this global economic uncertainty, but we’re not immune from it,” he said.
The Treasurer also confirmed his earlier conversation with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, where he raised concerns from Australian investors about proposed US tax changes. “I’ve engaged a lot with Australian institutional investors—super funds, the Future Fund—on their concerns,” Chalmers said. “I was able to represent them and raise their concerns directly with the US Treasury Secretary.”
With fuel prices fluctuating wildly this year, Chalmers added that he had asked the ACCC to monitor servos closely. “We don’t want to see service stations treat people like mugs,” he said. “We want to see the petrol prices reflect developments in the market.”
He closed by reiterating the government’s approach to rolling support: “We said when we extended those energy bill rebates in the most recent budget that they are not designed to go on forever… But obviously we keep them under constant review.”
With minimum wages increasing, paid parental leave expanding, and energy bill relief continuing, the 1st of July is shaping up to be a key moment in the government’s ongoing effort to cushion households without fuelling inflation. Chalmers insists that “we’re helping where we responsibly can.”
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💰From 1 July: min wage rise, 12% super, paid parental leave super & $150 energy rebates. 📈@JEChalmers notes #inflation at 2.1% but warns global risks remain. 🚗ACCC monitoring fuel prices. #CostOfLiving #TheIndianSun
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