New Opposition Promises Lower Bills and More Homes — But Offers No Numbers Yet
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The Coalition's new economic team — Shadow Treasurer Tim Wilson, Deputy Leader Senator Jane Hume, and Shadow Finance Minister Senator Claire Chandler — used their first press conference on 17 February 2026 to declare the Albanese Government responsible for rising prices, energy bills, and home ownership being "out of reach."
THE HEADLINES FROM THE ECONOMIC TEAM
Tim Wilson, appointed Shadow Treasurer at Tuesday's press conference, made cost of living the centrepiece of the Coalition's pitch. Wilson — who won back the Melbourne seat of Goldstein from independent Zoe Daniel at the 2025 federal election — declared: "The only pathway forward for achieving economic hope in Australia is a change of government."
Senator Jane Hume, Deputy Liberal Leader and Shadow Minister for Employment, Industrial Relations, Productivity and Deregulation, emphasised that wages cannot rise sustainably without productivity gains. "Without productivity we simply cannot have rising wages without inflation," she said.
Senator Claire Chandler, the new Shadow Finance Minister, attacked what she
called Labor's near-"trillion-dollar debt bomb" — characterising the Albanese
Government as having "completely abandoned any discipline" on spending.
She framed herself as a "small government" fiscal conservative.
WHAT IS A SHADOW TREASURER? (EXPLAINED SIMPLY)
Australia's opposition mirrors the Government's structure with its own team of critics called the Shadow Ministry. The Shadow Treasurer is the opposition's main economic spokesperson. Their job is not to run the budget — they don't have that power in opposition — but to hold the actual Treasurer (currently Jim Chalmers, Labor) to account, propose alternative policies, and campaign to take the job at the next election.
WHAT THE COALITION IS PROMISING VS WHAT LABOR SAYS
Taylor and his team attacked Labor on: higher taxes (including what they called taxes on homes and superannuation), rising energy bills, record government debt, immigration pressure on housing and infrastructure, and public sector wage growth outpacing private sector growth
THE HOUSING ANGLE — DIRECTLY RELEVANT TO YOU
Taylor directly acknowledged: "Home ownership and the prospect of home ownership needs to again become a centrepiece of the Australian dream. That is not how younger Australians see it right now."
Shadow Minister for Housing Senator Andrew Bragg has been tasked with "unblocking supply, speeding up approvals and demolishing the barriers to stop homes from being built." He also takes on the Environment portfolio.
THE ENERGY BILL FIGHT
Dan Tehan continues as Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction. Taylor's framing: "Energy is the economy. We can't rebuild manufacturing without cheaper,more reliable power and families need relief from rising bills."
The Coalition referred to Labor's net zero policy as a "tax on Australian
manufacturing" driving investment and jobs offshore. This is a contested political characterisation — energy economists and industry groups hold a range of views on the costs and benefits of net zero policies.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
The Coalition's Policy Development Task Force — co-chaired by Simon Kennedy and Zoe McKenzie — will develop the economic platform for the next federal election, due by May 2028. Tim Wilson said he expected to demonstrate policy direction "not just in words but deeds and campaigns" over the next two years.
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