This bill became law on Jun 30th, 2026.
Budget, tax & economy
Parliament approves $345.353 million from public money for the Senate, House of Representatives, Department of Parliamentary ServicesThe department that supports Parliament House and provides services to senators, members and parliamentary staff. and Parliamentary Budget OfficeAn independent parliamentary office that provides budget and costing analysis to parliamentarians. in 2026-27.
Parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office. need separate 2026-27 funding because the Constitution keeps these appropriations apart from ordinary annual government services. The bill appropriates public money from the Consolidated Revenue FundThe main pool of Commonwealth public money that this bill authorises money to be withdrawn from. for the Senate, House of Representatives, Department of Parliamentary ServicesThe department that supports Parliament House and provides services to senators, members and parliamentary staff. and Parliamentary Budget OfficeAn independent parliamentary office that provides budget and costing analysis to parliamentarians..
Australia’s constitutional appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes. rules already require funding for parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office. to be handled separately from ordinary annual government services, so the 2026-27 Budget needed a dedicated bill for the Senate, House of Representatives, Department of Parliamentary ServicesThe department that supports Parliament House and provides services to senators, members and parliamentary staff. and Parliamentary Budget OfficeAn independent parliamentary office that provides budget and costing analysis to parliamentarians.. Hon Dr Daniel Mulino MP introduced the bill to authorise $345.4 million from the Consolidated Revenue FundThe main pool of Commonwealth public money that this bill authorises money to be withdrawn from., and Parliament passed it before Royal AssentThe formal approval by the Governor-General that turns a bill passed by Parliament into an Act. on 30 June 2026 so the money could support parliamentary operations in 2026-27.
The clearest case against the bill was not about parliamentary department funding itself, but that it formed part of a wider budget critics said spent too much, raised taxes, added debt and failed to do enough on housing, living costs, disability and climate. Coalition MPs attacked the overall budget, while the Greens opposed it through amendments seeking a gas export tax and reversal of alleged NDISThe national scheme funding supports for eligible Australians with permanent and significant disability, raised here in debate about alleged budget cuts. cuts.
Hon Dr Daniel Mulino MP introduced this bill. It passed on the voices.
Did it become law?
Yes
Became law 30 June 2026
Final passage
Passed without a counted vote
2 recorded amendment or procedural votes were found, but no counted vote on the bill itself was recorded.
Passage speed
49 days
From introduction to the latest recorded parliamentary step
Meaning
Parliament approves $345.353 million from public money for the Senate, House of Representatives, Department of Parliamentary ServicesThe department that supports Parliament House and provides services to senators, members and parliamentary staff. and Parliamentary Budget OfficeAn independent parliamentary office that provides budget and costing analysis to parliamentarians. in 2026-27.
The funding can pay for the day-to-day work of parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office. and for specific outcome-based payments they manage for Parliament or government.
The Department of Parliamentary ServicesThe department that supports Parliament House and provides services to senators, members and parliamentary staff. receives nearly $274 million to support parliamentarians and look after Parliament House.
The Presiding OfficersThe parliamentary office holders, such as the Senate President and House Speaker, who can approve limited urgent extra funding under this bill. can add urgent extra funding for parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office., capped at $300,000 each for the Senate, House and Budget Office and $1 million for Parliamentary Services.
This one-off spending authority ends at the start of 1 July 2029.
The total of the items specified in Schedule 1 is $345,353,000.Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) as-passed bill text
The amount specified in a departmental item for a Parliamentary Department may be applied for the departmental expenditure of the Parliamentary Department.Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) as-passed bill text
The Department of Parliamentary Services will receive close to $274 million to support the work of the Australian parliament, through services to parliamentarians and as custodians of Parliament House.Minister's second reading speech
(1) This section applies if the responsible Presiding Officer is satisfied that there is an urgent need for expenditure in relation to a Parliamentary Department, in the current year, that is not provided for, or is insufficiently provided for, in Schedule 1:Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) as-passed bill text
This Act is repealed at the start of 1 July 2029.Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) as-passed bill text
Context
Australia’s constitutional appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes. rules already require funding for parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office. to be handled separately from ordinary annual government services, so the 2026-27 Budget needed a dedicated bill for the Senate, House of Representatives, Department of Parliamentary ServicesThe department that supports Parliament House and provides services to senators, members and parliamentary staff. and Parliamentary Budget OfficeAn independent parliamentary office that provides budget and costing analysis to parliamentarians.. Hon Dr Daniel Mulino MP introduced the bill to authorise $345.4 million from the Consolidated Revenue FundThe main pool of Commonwealth public money that this bill authorises money to be withdrawn from., and Parliament passed it before Royal AssentThe formal approval by the Governor-General that turns a bill passed by Parliament into an Act. on 30 June 2026 so the money could support parliamentary operations in 2026-27.
Budget bill sets aside $345.4 million for parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office.
Hon Dr Daniel Mulino MP said the bill formed part of the 2026-27 Budget appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes. bills and would fund the operations of the parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office..
Hansard ↗Hon Dr Daniel Mulino MP introduces the bill
The bill began its parliamentary passage in the House of Representatives after being presented and read a first time.
Parliamentary timeline ↗House passes the bill
The House agreed to the second and third readings, completing the bill’s passage through that chamber.
Parliamentary timeline ↗Parliament passes the bill
Both houses passed the bill in the same form, completing parliamentary approval before the new financial year.
Parliamentary timeline ↗Royal AssentThe formal approval by the Governor-General that turns a bill passed by Parliament into an Act. makes the funding law
The Governor-General gave Royal AssentThe formal approval by the Governor-General that turns a bill passed by Parliament into an Act., turning the bill into an Act for the 2026-27 parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office. appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes..
Parliamentary timeline ↗Legislative route
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
Introduced and read a first time
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Second reading moved
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
Referred to Federation Chamber
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
Second reading debate
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
Second reading agreed to
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Third reading agreed to
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
Introduced and read a first time
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Second reading moved
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
Second reading agreed to
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Third reading agreed to
Both houses passed the bill in the same form, completing parliamentary passage.
Finally passed both Houses
The Governor-General gave Royal AssentThe formal approval by the Governor-General that turns a bill passed by Parliament into an Act., turning the bill into an Act.
Key criticism
The clearest case against the bill was not about parliamentary department funding itself, but that it formed part of a wider budget critics said spent too much, raised taxes, added debt and failed to do enough on housing, living costs, disability and climate. Coalition MPs attacked the overall budget, while the Greens opposed it through amendments seeking a gas export tax and reversal of alleged NDISThe national scheme funding supports for eligible Australians with permanent and significant disability, raised here in debate about alleged budget cuts. cuts.
Criticism was mostly aimed at the wider budget package, not the mechanics of this parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office. appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes..
Wider budget spending and debt
Coalition MPs argued the appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes. package reflected a fiscally reckless budget that would increase taxes, add debt and worsen cost-of-living pressure rather than relieve it.
Gas tax and NDIS concerns
The Greens sought to amend the bill debate to call for at least a 25 per cent minimum tax on gas export revenue and to reverse alleged cuts to the National Disability Insurance SchemeThe national scheme funding supports for eligible Australians with permanent and significant disability, raised here in debate about alleged budget cuts., arguing the budget did not meet people’s needs without those changes.
Underinvestment in social and climate priorities
Some crossbench criticism was that the budget behind the bill did not invest enough in climate resilience, mishandled proposed tax changes and failed to raise JobSeeker, even where speakers acknowledged some measures they supported.
Further sources
Votes
The bill passed both chambers on the voices. The counted divisions below were about amendments or procedure, not final passage.
House agreed to the bill's third reading on the voices, so there is no list of individual Aye and No votes for final passage in that chamber.
Passed on the voices
In a voice vote, members call out Aye or No and the presiding officer judges which side has it. Individual names are only recorded if a formal division is called.
Senate agreed to the bill's third reading on the voices, so there is no list of individual Aye and No votes for final passage in that chamber.
Passed on the voices
In a voice vote, members call out Aye or No and the presiding officer judges which side has it. Individual names are only recorded if a formal division is called.
Recorded amendment and procedural votes grouped by chamber. Expand a vote to see the party breakdown.
Senate
Defeated 10 to 33. Support came from Greens. Opposition came from Labor, Liberal, One Nation, UAP, and minor parties and independents.
This was a second-reading statement rather than a direct change to the bill text. If agreed, it would have added the Senate's view that gas exporters should pay more tax and that NDISThe national scheme funding supports for eligible Australians with permanent and significant disability, raised here in debate about alleged budget cuts. cuts in the budget bills should be reversed, but the bill then continued without that statement.
Defeated 5 to 38. Support came from One Nation and UAP. Opposition came from Labor, Greens, Liberal, and minor parties and independents.
This was a procedural vote, not a final vote on whether the bill would become law.
This list includes amendment votes, procedural votes and votes on the bill itself.
Parliamentary debate
Start here — lead voices
Daniel Mulino supports the bill and asks the House to pass it because it provides $345.4 million from the Consolidated Revenue FundThe main pool of Commonwealth public money that this bill authorises money to be withdrawn from. to fund the parliamentary departmentsThe four parliamentary bodies funded by this bill: the Senate department, House department, Department of Parliamentary Services and Parliamentary Budget Office.' 2026-27 operations, including major support for the Department of Parliamentary ServicesThe department that supports Parliament House and provides services to senators, members and parliamentary staff..
Read in Hansard ↗Julian Leeser opposes the appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes. package, including this bill, saying Labor’s budget breaks election promises and imposes harmful tax changes that will hurt small business, investors, retirees and housing supply.
Read in Hansard ↗Zali Steggall strongly criticises the budget behind the bill, saying it underinvests in climate resilience, mishandles proposed tax changes and fails to lift JobSeeker, though she welcomes child support reforms.
Read in Hansard ↗Shayne Neumann supports the appropriationA legal authority from Parliament to spend public money for specified purposes. package, saying it backs the budget's cost-of-living relief and investment in health, housing and economic resilience.
Read in Hansard ↗All speeches by bloc
27 speakers · 27 support
“This budget is about relief, recovery and resilience, and I'm proud to speak on the appropriation bills associated with it. It delivers more tax cuts and a fair go at buying your own home, and it strengthens Medicare for all. It's about getting workers, families and businesses in my community through the current global fuel crisis while building a stronger economy that works for more people. At the outset, I want to say that the budget is a budget dedicated to tax relief for 13.3 million Australian workers, helping more people realise the great Australian dream of homeownership and creating a fairer and more sustainable tax system for all Australians.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I want to contrast the government's budget with the opposition's chaos and cuts. This is a responsible budget. It's focused on relief now, resilience for the country in the face of global shocks and reform to set us up for success in the future, particularly for the next generation. It's a tough environment globally and for many in Australia. The conflict in the Middle East is weighing heavily on our economy and compounding the cost-of-living pressures experienced by too many Australians. The budget is about delivering more cost-of-living help and building a more productive economy, a better tax system and a fairer housing market with a stronger and more sustainable budget.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This is a government that has, I think, been characterised by the fact that it has made hard decisions. We make the hard decisions. We're making the hard decisions because, effectively, they're the right decisions to make. You see that in the debate around this year's budget, and in our record of delivery over a period of time, because we are focused on helping workers, we're focused on helping first home buyers and we're focused on helping small businesses, so that more Australians can earn more and keep more of what they earn and also get into the housing market and get ahead.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I rise today to speak in support of the debate on the Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027 and related bills. This Labor budget is focused on relief, resilience and reform that delivers for all Australians. That's why this budget is delivering more tax cuts, a stronger Medicare and a fair go at homeownership. It's delivering more cost-of-living relief and helping build an economy that works for more people. We know that people are doing it really tough right now. Cost-of-living pressures have been compounded by the conflict in the Middle East, while at the same time we face longstanding challenges when it comes to productivity, intergenerational equity and access to housing.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Our budget is about delivering for families, for young people, for working people and for those who rely on our safety net. It's a fair budget. It's a budget that faces the challenges we face today. When you work hard and save, you should be able to buy your own home. But, right now, first home buyers have been priced out of property by investors, where the tax department is on their side. We are on the side of Australians. We want to see people in their own homes. No more will you go to an auction and see investor versus investor because they can use tax breaks to get through. We want to make sure that the families that are working hard, trying to build their foundation and get somewhere to settle down, have the opportunity to buy a home.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This budget is a responsible and forward-looking plan that recognises the pressures people are under right now while also making our economy fairer into the future. Canberrans are feeling the pressure right now, and this budget meets those pressures head on. It delivers targeted cost-of-living relief, strengthens essential services like health and housing that people rely on, supports Australia's transition to clean energy and reinforces a more resilient economy. Importantly, it reflects Labor values of fairness, opportunity and ensuring that no-one is left behind. For the ACT, it continues a strong record of investment in our services, infrastructure and national institutions. It ensures that Canberra remains a great place to live, work and raise a family.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This is a big, bold and fair budget. It's a Labor budget at its core, putting fairness first and supporting Australians. I'm proud to be part of the team delivering for the Illawarra and I commend the bill to the House.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“These appropriation bills say that our government wants an Australia where hard work is rewarded, where Medicare remains universal, where young people can aspire to own a home and where more Australians can get ahead. The Albanese Labor government is getting on with the job of building Australia's future.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This budget builds on the work of the Albanese Labor government, delivering more cost-of-living relief, stronger health care, more housing and greater opportunities for all Australians. While Australians are working hard, we know many are still doing it tough. This budget responds to that challenge. It delivers more tax cuts for every taxpayer, putting more money back into people's pockets when it matters most, benefiting millions of workers right across the country, including more than three million Queenslanders.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“If I may find some sort of agreement with the member for Gippsland, the previous coalition speaker, I will say this: budgets are a reflection of values and we absolutely in this budget demonstrate values—values of fairness for first home buyers who want to get a foot in the door and values of better health care for people by investing in Medicare. I think Medicare is a great reflection of Australian values—that we all chip in to make sure that, when people need help with their health, they are not dependent on their wallet. We all chip in to provide a quality universal healthcare system. If you compare us to the United States, one of the biggest causes of bankruptcy there is medical costs. We don't have that here. We're providing now, under this budget, cheaper medicines. We've made permanent Medicare urgent care clinics, like the one we opened up in Rooty Hill in 2023 that has seen nearly 23,000 people out of hours and given them urgent health care, and all people needed to bring to get that help was their Medicare card. It's a terrific development.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Our efforts to help people with the cost of living, through this budget and previous ones, is seen starkly in health. This budget contains more work in the healthcare area—like making medicines cheaper by listing new and amended medicines on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, including treatments for cystic fibrosis, chronic kidney disease and various cancers, with $5.9 billion provided over five years. An additional $25 billion over five years will strengthen our public hospitals. We're also securing the future of Medicare urgent care clinics, with $1.8 billion over five years, with ongoing secure funding.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This is a responsible budget for the times. Budgets are never easy. I can never recall walking into this chamber at budget time and listening to a government saying how easy it is to balance their budget. It's never easy. But under all the circumstances that Australia faces right now, this is the right budget for the times.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Nearly two weeks ago we stood in this chamber and heard the Treasurer handing down the 2026-27 budget. It's a budget that delivers what Australia needs right now. It's responsible, it implements real reform and it's about making sure the economy works better for more Australians, not just a few. It doesn't matter where you go in my local electorate on Brisbane's south side, whether it's a barbecue in Tarragindi, whether it's on the doors in Annerley, whether it's an event in Sunnybank, whether it's on a street corner in Acacia Ridge, everyone raises the same challenges that they and their families are facing again and again and again. Those challenges are housing and cost of living.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I rise in support of Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027, Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2026-2027 and Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027 because they're not simply legislative measures; these are commitments to fund new initiatives, to strengthen existing programs and to deliver real support for those who need it and where Australians need it the most. The measures in this budget are to help Australians in every way possible, especially the ones who have been missing out for a number of years.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“These reforms ensure that we can generate additional revenue and budget savings. The revenue will increase by $44 billion to 2028-29 since MYEFO. We're also ensuring that there are savings that are outlined in our budget through reforms to the National Disability Insurance Scheme, to the way private health insurance operates and to uncommitted funding across programs. In total, there's $63.8 billion in savings in this budget alone. That will take pressure off Australians because we will be able to return some of those savings to Australians in the form of returning bracket creep. That's in the form of the two tax cuts that are coming over the course of the next two years, the working Australians tax offset, the $1,000 deduction and being able to halve the fuel excise at the moment while Australians are facing increasing prices at the bowser. Because we're making those responsible decisions, because we're reforming our taxation system and because we've been able to find savings, we're able to return some of the bracket creep to Australians in the form of lower taxes and additional incentives in our taxation system.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This is a responsible budget, a reforming budget, a budget designed to promote economic resilience. It's a budget for all Australians, young and old, no matter your background. And it's a budget that recognises the urgency of the moment, a moment that the Albanese Labor government is determined to meet. I commend these bills to the House.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“We need to build a better Australia for young people, to give them the opportunity to own their first home, to give them a foothold. Already these policies are working. Every weekend, we're seeing news reports of first home buyers getting into their first home. They're shocked, surprised that they are no longer competing against investors for existing stock. This is a good thing. We need people to have the aspiration to own their first home, just like I was able to and just like many people in previous generations were able to. These are tough reforms, but we are doing them for the right reasons and at the right time. I commend these bills to the House.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Do you know what this budget is about? It is a choice. It is a choice about a first home buyer getting into their own home or someone wanting their third investment property. It chooses people who want to live in a home over people who want to profit from homes. That is a choice that this government is proud to make. This is a government that is not afraid of reform, and this budget proves it.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Those opposite want to keep younger Australians down and want to continue to lock them out of the housing market. They showed their true colours voting against our cost-of-living measures, including our tax cuts. They have said they will vote against tax reform—the tax reforms that are being introduced in this bill—and that, if this reform gets passed by the parliament, they will repeal them when they are next in government. What we are doing is making fundamental change to support our communities and get more people into a home of their own. We are helping with cost of living through this bill. And I want to say to the young people across Australia and in my Brisbane electorate: this government wants to support you, to give you the best opportunities in life and to give you a fair crack. That's the Australian way, and that's what we will always fight for.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Labor's budget backs working Australians not just in principle but in practice. It supports families under pressure. It strengthens Medicare. It builds housing supply. It makes the tax system fairer and it invests in clean energy and our environment. This budget moves us in the right direction—a direction grounded in fairness, opportunity and responsibility. It recognises the pressures people are under and responds with practical measures that make a difference. It invests in the future, not just in the present. It ensures that Australia remains a hopeful nation that continues to believe in a fair go for all, where opportunity is not determined by postcode, background or circumstance but by effort, contribution and fairness.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“The measures I've spoken of today are united by a simple principle. Labor believes government should make life better for ordinary Australians—not harder, not more expensive and not more uncertain. Government should not be dragging us back to the last century. Whether it's strengthening Medicare, making medicines cheaper, expanding mental health care, supporting older Australians or investing in cleaner, cheaper energy—these are reforms designed to improve people's lives. They are reforms grounded in fairness, grounded in opportunity and grounded in the belief that no Australian should be left behind. That's what this government is delivering, and that's why these investments matter so deeply to communities like Newcastle and the Hunter.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I rise to speak on the Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027 and other appropriation bills for 2026-2027. Our Treasurer delivered the 2026 budget two weeks ago, and it is a budget for every Australian. It is a budget for workers, for first home buyers, for families struggling with cost-of-living pressures and for future generations. It is an ambitious budget in a challenging global environment. It is a budget full of tough decisions to build resilience and bolster our economy, while also finally addressing intergenerational inequality. It is a budget that delivers more cost-of-living relief, more funding for Medicare, housing, aged care and much-needed tax reform. It also delivers for my home state of Queensland. This is a budget about resilience and security, getting Australians through the global oil shock while building a fair economy that works for more people. I am incredibly proud of it.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This is not a budget that will fix every problem for every person. No budget will, and nor will any single policy lever. But it is a budget delivered by a government determined to throw everything at keeping us on the course of delivery that this government has already started.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Unbelievably, we are already seeing results. We are seeing first home buyers, over just two weekends in, who are able to compete against investors, as they aren't using the money that they were getting from taxpayers to prop up their bids. Already we're seeing results. It might have taken us 40 years to get into this mess, but we don't have 40 years to fix it. And so I commend the bill to this House, as part of the government's strategy to fix things up for— (Time expired)”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This budget is about creating opportunities. It is pro-aspiration for people seeking to enter the housing market and invest in their future, especially for young people. It is pro-worker for those families feeling the pinch and in need of tax relief. It is pro-investment for individuals and businesses looking to build their futures with shares and portfolios. This Albanese Labor government is not shying away from the difficult reforms that are necessary to build our nation's future. We are proud of what we have delivered, but we know there is more work to do. Good governments listen to their constituents, they do not alienate parts of their communities, and they do not pit them against each other.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Parliamentary Departments Appropriation Bill 1 provides appropriations for decisions taken by Government in the 2026-27 Budget for the operations of Parliamentary Departments. Together with Appropriation Bills 1 and 2, this Bill forms part of the Government's Budget Appropriation Bills.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This bill seeks approval for appropriations from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of $345.4 million. Funding provided through this bill will support the following significant items of parliamentary departments.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
19 speakers · 20 contributions · 12 oppose · 7 unclear
“We oppose this budget and its tax increases. I can't support a budget that taxes and disadvantages my community as much as this budget does. This is a bad Labor budget. It deserves to be opposed. We will fight these toxic taxes every step of the way. If they get through, we will repeal them.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Budgets are always about choices. In this budget, the people in my community and throughout regional Australia know the Albanese government didn't choose them and didn't choose our farmers. There's a $52 million cut in this budget to the Future Drought Fund. Maybe the government believes we'll never have another drought—I don't know. At a time when the global conflict is driving up fertiliser prices, increasing diesel costs and putting pressure on food production around the world, the government has failed to provide a single new dollar to implement the unfinished National Food Security Strategy—not a dollar to implement it; it's quite extraordinary. They're clawing back funding from the Pest and Disease Preparedness and Response Program as part of more than $104 million in agricultural grant reductions. At the same time, the government has allowed the Supporting Communities Manage Pest Animals and Weeds Program to lapse, without any replacement.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I would love to fight an election on this issue. It's a shame we didn't, and they weren't upfront about it 12 months ago. I think we would have had a very different result. I'd love to, but they're trying to jam it in between elections. I think we could win an election on this, but I hope they backflip on it. I really do hope this is backflipped on because I think it will destroy Australia. We're hearing about carve-outs, and now we're hearing in the press carve-outs aren't going to fix it. It's not going to go far enough. We need these taxes axed for Andrew and his wife, a teacher and a nurse. That is the face of what is happening here. This budget's not just a fiscal document; it's a statement of values. And Labor's values are clear. If you work hard, they're going to tax you more. If you save, they will tax you more. If you invest, they will tax you more. If you run a small business, they will tax you more. If you try to build a future for your family, they will make that harder. It's not reform; it's an assault on everyday Australians. And the great contradiction is this: Labor says it wants more housing and more housing supply, but its policies will drive investment away from housing. Labor says it wants to help renters, but fewer investors means fewer rental homes, and we know how many: 35,000. It's in black and white in the budget papers for that policy.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I rise to speak to the Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027. Labor's budget of broken promises and higher taxes destroys any concept of a fair go for the people of Hinkler. I was on the road only last week with my mobile offices straight off the bat. At every stop on the map, from Fishermen's Park at Urangan to Pialba, from the foreshore at Bargara to Woodgate Beach and to the bustling main street of Childers and then across to Bundaberg, in every location I've heard loud and clear that confidence is low and so, too, is the trust in this Labor government. There's the lack of a fair go for veterans, the unfair private health insurance rebate removal for our over-65s, despair over Labor's toxic taxes and crippling conditions for small businesses.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I rise to make a contribution to the Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027. To begin my contribution, I would like to quote Oliver Cromwell's speech to the English parliament that he delivered on 20 April 1653 because it is entirely relevant and exactly the way I feel about the government we have today and the way it has delivered its budget and the effect it will have on the Australian people. Cromwell said:”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“Taken as a whole, this budget lets rural and regional people down big time. It's a budget that defunds regional Australia. It's as though Labor has drawn a line around metropolitan Labor seats and said, 'The rest of you: you'll have to make do.'”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“But this is really about this budget. There are lots of failures in this budget. It is important that we talk about it because the Australian people are struggling on so many fronts. They're worried about their future, their children's future and the state of the country. Disappointingly, Labor's budget only makes those worries worse. It does not help Australians today. This budget provides zero cost-of-living relief for the Australian people today. When I'm out listening to locals in my community, many express that they don't feel this government has their backs and that this government doesn't understand the challenges they have.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“The budget was just a budget of broken promises, higher taxes, more debt, lower living standards and fewer homes for Australians. There is a projected decade of deficits worth about $150 billion, with gross debt of around $1.25 trillion, annual interest costs of over $42 billion per year—that's roughly $80,000 per minute. Higher taxes of about $50 billion in total were announced, including $15 billion from personal income tax. Government spending is at its highest level in 40 years, outside of the pandemic. There are 35,000 fewer homes being built. This is in Labor's own budget papers.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“But this budget is the highest taxing budget ever. Goodness me! In this economy, at this time, it is the highest taxing budget ever. What a challenge for future treasurers! How do you address the impact this will have? What this budget does in addition to being the highest taxing budget ever is it banks in 10 years of deficits. When you talk about the performance of a Treasurer or a government—the economic credibility, its legacy—one would think that the economic situation it leaves after it is the most important factor in determining that legacy. A government that leaves you a decade of deficits, after having delivered the highest taxing budget ever, that's an incredible legacy and one that this government should be ashamed of. It is also the highest spending budget in 40 years, outside of the pandemic. In the first term of this government, we heard about spending restraint from the Treasurer. I'm not sure that the word was being used as it is commonly understood. We have the highest spending budget in 40 years. There is no restraint. There is no spending restraint here at all!”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“But it gets worse. In the appropriations that the government wants to put in place, there is not the infrastructure spending that we desperately need in regional Australia. The roads are crumbling. They are actually unsafe, and we've seen money stripped away from the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program—money for safer, better roads. Certainly in my electorate, I'm yet to see the $140 million promised by the member for Eden-Monaro before she entered parliament during the by-election. She is now the regional development minister. What I want to see from the member for Ballarat, who also happens to be the infrastructure minister, and what I want to see from the member for Eden-Monaro, who is the regional development minister, is for them to go in to the cabinet process and shake those city-centric frontbench members up and say, 'Where is the fairness for country Australia, for rural, regional and remote Australia?' Because it's not there at the moment, and it's their job to represent the people who send them to Canberra to do a job. If they don't do that, the city-centric frontbenchers will always ride roughshod over them. They will.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I also rise to speak on Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027, the budget that was handed down recently. Budgets are important documents not just for the figures that a lot of people talk about—'We're funding this. We're paying for that. We're cutting this.' It really does set out some pointers and directions of where a government's true motivations lie, where their true philosophies lie and where they want to take the country.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“In my first speech in this parliament I spoke about the need to look beyond the next election cycle and ask what Australia should look like in 100 years from now. That is the test of serious government—not what headline can be won today, not what political advantage can be seized tomorrow but what kind of country we leave to those who come after us. This budget fails that test, but there is another way.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I rise today to speak on the appropriation bills before the House and to put on record what people in Capricornia and across regional Australia are telling me plainly. They are doing it tough, and they've been asked to pay more while getting less in return. Appropriation bills are not just paperwork; they are a statement of a government's priorities—what it funds, what it cuts and who it chooses to back. On the evidence of this budget and what flows from it, the message to the regions is, once again, 'You are not a priority.'”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“At a time when Australians are doing it tough, those opposite celebrated on budget night—celebrated a budget of broken promises; a budget of higher taxes, with more spending and less to see for it.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“We ask our Australian public, the people in our electorates, to tighten their belts. We ask them to tighten their belts. Debate on Appropriation Bill (No.1) and Appropriation Bill (No.2) is exactly the time when the opposition speaks to the government and says to them, 'It is about time that government tightens its belt.' The government needs to live within its means. No longer can we keep going back to the trough of taxes. No longer can we go back to the trough of borrowing money from overseas countries where we are accruing an interest component that is beyond the comprehension. There was a point in history when we on this side left no debt for a Labor government. Today we are looking down the barrel of a trillion dollars. It is a shame, and I will finish where I started. I want to thank my Christine for encouraging me to re-read George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, where I remember intently the workings of the Ministry of Truth. Shame!”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“On housing, the government has adopted elements of the coalition's previous infrastructure proposal but at a reduced scale, committing $2 billion instead of the $5 billion originally proposed. By contrast, the coalition's regional Australia future fund aimed to ensure a fair share of housing infrastructure investment for regional communities—something not clearly replicated in this budget. In response, the coalition's budget in reply outlines a different path. Angus Taylor and Matt Canavan have committed to reversing the new tax measures. We will repeal them.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I encourage all the Labor caucus members who are in here to stand up to this. You might agree with the policy. I respect the fact that you might agree with it. I disagree with it. I think it will kill private enterprise. I encourage the Labor caucus members in this chamber to go to the leadership of your party and at least question whether it was appropriate to be deceptive with this. Was it appropriate that, 12 months ago, we, as a political party, as the government of this country, deceived the Australian people? Dave Hughes has gone public. He said he voted for you lot in the election last year. He is saying that you do not have the mandate for this. And you don't have the mandate. If you think you have the mandate, look at how you important you think democracy is and how important you think elections are. If you're going to bring important legislation—this is not just normal budget appropriation stuff. This is radical reform to the tax system. That's when you take that to an election first because of the ramifications it will have. I say shame on every Labor MP who's going to vote for this.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
Hansard records 2 separate contributions by Andrew Willcox on this bill. They are grouped here so the speaker is listed once.
Second reading speech
Andrew Willcox opposes the bill, arguing it is part of a budget that is fiscally reckless, inflationary and worsening cost-of-living pressure on families and businesses in his electorate.
“I rise today to speak to the brutal reality of what this Labor government's budget has delivered. This budget is a formal declaration of economic surrender. What we're seeing is an administration that has completely run out of ideas and run out of money. As we all know, when Labor run out of money, they come after yours. Just over a week ago, the Treasurer delivered a budget that completely abandons everyday Australians at a time when they're facing the most acute financial pressure in a generation. These appropriation bills represent a written testament to the fiscal recklessness of this Labor government.”Read this contribution in Hansard ↗
Second reading speech
Andrew Willcox opposes the bill, arguing the appropriations show reckless Labor spending that is worsening inflation, raising taxes and doing nothing to relieve the cost-of-living pain facing regional Australians. He says the budget ignores families and small businesses while expanding government spending and bureaucracy.
“The fundamental failure of these appropriations is the complete and total lack of basic human empathy. This government simply does not understand the depth of the pain its policies are causing. People are facing genuine, terrifying desperation. The people of regional Australia are angry, and they have every right to be angry. They are deeply frustrated because they feel completely invisible to the Prime Minister, who promised them a better future and delivered nothing but broken words and shattered trust. They were promised a better life. Instead, they've been hit by consecutive interest rate rises that have stripped hundreds of dollars out of their disposable income every single month.”Read this contribution in Hansard ↗
“Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027 is where the rubber hits the road. This budget of betrayal is built on Labor lies and broken promises and becomes clear to all Australians. It has been sobering, to say the least, to listen to the stories of so many small-business owners in my own electorate offering a vastly different perspective to the propaganda that we are hearing from government MPs at the moment as to what these changes will have on their small businesses. So today I want to share the story of Ian, who has written to me as a local Bunbury business owner who founded his first small business 13 years ago, at the age of 26. Subsequently, he has built that business to employ 100 people. And since taking on his first apprentice in 2017, he has seen 33 young Australians successfully complete an apprenticeship and qualify as tradesmen.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
1 speaker · 1 oppose
“What's to be done? We could start right now. What better way to demonstrate a willingness to break with the status quo than to back this amendment to the budget, to implement a tax on gas corporations? What better way to show a willingness to not follow politics as usual than to break with party lines and support this eminently sensible and positive reform that people are demanding? So I'm imploring, cross the floor! Come on, just cross the floor and vote for a gas tax. I want to urge members of the Labor Party, the Liberal Party, the Nats and One Nation to all cross the floor. Their voters will reward them for it. I want members in this chamber to know that their voters actually want a gas tax. Their voters want to see them side with the people, not with vested interests.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
1 speaker · 1 oppose
“This is quite a remarkable state of affairs we're in. Now, I'm not saying that the coalition hasn't done bad budgets as well. I was present for Joe Hockey's budget. That was a train wreck. This is up there with it—an absolute train wreck. What you hear all the time from wonderful colleagues on the other side are people going through the talking points who have absolutely no idea about how business works. So here's the suggestion: if you want to make the assets on the balance sheet work, you must give a strategic mechanism that gives them an advantage. One of the great strategic mechanisms that gives them an advantage is the price of energy. To get the price of energy going, you have to have a continuous supply that's predictable and reliable, which is coal-fired power. You have to have the brains not to blow up Liddell power station but to actually refurbish it and make it bigger and better and make it work. That's what brains do. That gives you a strategic asset on your balance sheet.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
5 speakers · 2 oppose · 3 unclear
“I rise to respond to the government's budget papers and the appropriation bills for 2026-27. The budget contains measures that respond to some immediate pressures, but it fails the bigger test on a number of fronts—and I want to deal with some of those tonight.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I rise to speak on the bills that give effect to the government's fifth budget. These bills facilitate appropriation for government expenditure. They do not, of themselves, implement the policy and legislative changes announced in the budget, and that's important to remember. However, in bringing the budget into effect, these bills reflect the priorities of the government and how it will fund the delivery of essential services and investments against revenue.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I can't tell you how many emails I've received but I think that the government needs to do better on this. For the first time in a decade, I just cannot support this budget bill.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I would urge the government to bring in a gas export tax. I would also urge the government to be upfront and transparent about its dealings with the public. Regardless of what you think about these tax changes, if the government had wanted to bring them in, it should have had the integrity to go to the Australian people and ask for a mandate for them. It's very simple. I'm a crossbencher, but I have seen this happen before. When coalition governments broke promises, they were rightly condemned for it, including by those on the opposite side of the chamber. So you shouldn't expect anything different to happen to you. There is no mandate for this. For us, this budget was a budget of broken highways and broken promises—and you can't build public trust on broken promises, and you can't run a regional economy on broken highways.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“In the lead-up to the budget, the Prime Minister dismissed this reform as 'populist'. This is a mistake. When the Prime Minister calls this proposed reform 'populist', he is seeking to diminish your valid concerns. He is trying to convince you that it's unreasonable to desire a fair return on the resources that you own. He is trying to persuade you that you simply cannot ask for more of what is already yours. And when he blocks this reform, he's not just disregarding the will of the people; he's hamstringing his own government's ability to deliver the services and cost-of-living support that we all so desperately need. And that's exactly what we saw in the budget. We've heard two things from the government in the past few weeks. First, we heard about the need to find savings wherever we could. And second, we heard that this budget would be all about tax reform. By deciding to leave a gas export tax off this budget, the government has directly undermined both of these goals.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
Record
House · Introduced and read a first time
Introduced
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
House · Second reading moved
Second reading opened
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
House · Second reading debate
Second reading debate
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
House · Referred to Federation Chamber
Referred to Federation Chamber
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
House · Second reading debate
Second reading debate
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
House · Second reading debate
Second reading debate
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
House · Second reading debate
Second reading debate
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
House · Returned to House for further consideration
Returned to House for further consideration
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
House · Second reading agreed to
Second reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
House · Third reading agreed to
Third reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Senate · Introduced and read a first time
Introduced
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
Senate · Second reading moved
Second reading opened
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Senate · Second reading agreed to
Second reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
Senate · Third reading agreed to
Third reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Parliament · Finally passed both Houses
Passed both houses
Both houses passed the bill in the same form, completing parliamentary passage.
Assent · Assent
Assent
The Governor-General gave Royal AssentThe formal approval by the Governor-General that turns a bill passed by Parliament into an Act., turning the bill into an Act.
