Australia and Wentworth have a bright economic future, with the transition to a cleaner, greener economy presenting a huge opportunity for our country and our community. However, we also face significant headwinds, with an unsustainable budget deficit, rising cost of living, and a complex and inefficient tax system.

You have told me you want responsible economic policy that delivers on the opportunities of the future. That’s why I’m advocating for:

1. Reform of our taxation system: Our national debt will soon exceed $1 trillion and the government is consistently spending more than it raises in revenue. We have some of the highest business and personal tax rates in the OECD, and our tax system is not set-up to deliver the productivity gains our future prosperity depends on. That’s why I’m advocating for a wide-ranging tax review or tax summit, which engages business and community groups in its design, to create an efficient, simple, transparent system that encourages investment while providing high quality public services and support to our most vulnerable.

2. Support for business, innovation, and productivity: Australia is well positioned for the future economy, with cheap renewable energy and a skilled workforce. To seize the near $1 trillion economic opportunity from the green transition, we need to provide policy certainty on climate and accelerate the transition through a sector-by-sector approach. I’m also advocating for targeted support to drive innovation and investment – an area where Wentworth leads the country – and to reduce unproductive red tape that holds our businesses back.

3. Migration reform and investment in skills: From local tech companies to coffee shops, people in Wentworth have told me that their businesses are being crippled and essential services are at risk due to skills and labour shortages. That’s why I’ve long advocated for migration reform, including immediate action to ameliorate labour shortages, as well as boosting the permanent intake of high-skilled and high-earning individuals to Australia to set-up our workforce for future success.

4. Inclusive growth, cost of living support, and action on housing: The fossil fuel price crisis, interest rate rises, and the ongoing effects of COVID-19 on the global economy are driving up the cost of living for Australian families. That’s why I’m advocating for Australia to reduce our reliance on expensive foreign fuel; help families to move to cleaner, cheaper renewable energy; raise childcare subsidies and expand paid parental leave to unlock the $11 billion economic opportunity from increased female workforce participation; and for urgent action to increase housing supply so that the next generation of young people are not locked-out of home ownership.

What have I done so far

• Successfully lobbied the government for an increase in permanent skilled migration, based on the needs of businesses in Wentworth

• Stood up for small businesses when the government rushed through its industrial relations reforms , including by putting forward amendments that would have protected small businesses but still got wages moving in highly-feminised and lower-wage sectors

• Consistently called for the government to take action on the fossil fuel price crisis that is leading to rising energy bills – before and after the October budget

• Held key public sector bodies like the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to account through my role on the House Economics Committee

• Represented Wentworth’s views at the Jobs and Skills Summit, informing my position through an extensive survey of people and businesses in our community

• Consistently advocated for a broad review of our tax system, with government Ministers, in parliament, public forums , and the media

• Co-founded the Parliamentary Friends of Entrepreneurs, Small and Medium Business to make sure the voice of small businesses is heard in Canberra

• Successfully lobbied the Government to take a leadership role on housing supply, including by advocating for this strongly in parliamentary debates

• Successfully lobbied the government to increase Paid Parental Leave to 26 weeks and include a ‘use-it-or-lose-it’ provision to encourage sharing of leave with the second parent

• Voted in support of legislation to increase the rate of childcare subsidy and help get more women who want to back into work