Government Can’t Control Ukraine War but Can Help Australians With Cost of Living: Independent MP Dai Le

Independent candidate Dai Le chats with voters at King Park Public School on Federal Election day, in the seat of Fowler, Sydney, Saturday, May 21, 2022. AAP Image/Dean Lewins

An Australian Independent MP has said that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese should focus on helping Australians suffering from the cost of living crisis rather than let international affairs such as the war in Ukraine divert his attention.

The comment comes after Albanese pledged $100 million in military aid for Ukraine after visiting the war-torn country in the first week of July.

Dai Le, who claimed the Western Sydney seat of Fowler from high-profile Labor Senator Kristina Keneally, said Australian households are feeling the pain of rising interest rates, mortgage repayments and food prices.

“You now have a tin of blueberries for about A$10. That used to be $3.99,” she told 2GB on Tuesday, “And it just doesn’t seem to stop. This is something that I believe the government can control in terms of the ability to support our family here in Western Sydney.”

The Fairfield councillor said she “would love for the Prime Minister to come up here to see how it is that we live out” in her electorate of Fowler.

“The war in Ukraine we can’t control, but this is something that the government can actually support the families out here in Western Sydney,” Le said.

A woman uses a fuel dispenser to fill her car up with petrol at a petrol station in Melbourne, Australia, on July 23, 2013. Scott Barbour/Getty Images

Calls to Address Soaring Petrol Prices

The independent MP also urged the government to extend the reduction of the fuel levy as she argued “people can’t really afford duel to impact their weekly budget.” The fuel tax cut expires in September and will cost $3 billion in lost revenue

“We’re just asking the government to really step up and consider this in our area for a while and no doubt, I’m sure many MPs … will also go and fight for their respective communities when it comes to the current high cost of living.”

Despite the government’s decision to halve fuel excise to 22.1 percent in March, Australians are still paying a staggering price of A$2.1 per litre for petrol. The rise in petrol costs, along with labour crunch, is driving up food inflation, which climbed to 4.3 percent in the March quarter of 2022 from 1.9 percent in Q4.

But some economists have disagreed that cutting fuel excise is the best option to ease the cost of living.

Peter Tulip, Chief Economist at the Centre for Independent Studies argued in a commentary on The Epoch Times that fuel tax cut, on top of government’s support payments, “would amount to double-counting.”

“Second, a policy of adjusting fuel excise to offset market changes essentially means that the government pays instead of the consumer. This removes any market discipline on sellers, giving them an invitation to raise prices further,” he wrote on March 17.

“A better form of relief from the cost of living pressures is to reduce income tax rates. Instead of distorting market signals, this improves incentives to work and save.”

Simon Tracey, Woolworths National Community Manager, meets with Wayne Pinniger during a produce contribution to OzHarvest in Sydney, Australia, on April 22, 2020. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

Amid calls to boost skilled migrant workers over the next two years to fill job vacancies, Le said she would support the upscaling of the current population, but supporting local businesses should be “first and foremost.”

“If there’s anything that small businesses need, I would definitely look into supporting something to help ease the cost of running a small business out here.”

‘Some People Get Offended Easily’

The local deputy mayor-turned-MP also weighed in on the controversial ad by the Human Rights Commission calling for an end for racism in Australia.

Le, who fled to Australia from communist Vietnam in 1975, said “we need to tell a positive message about how we as Australians were moving into a very multicultural Australia.”

The Fowler MP noted that while some people have treated her differently because of her skin colour, she argued “it’s up to me how I actually interpret those behaviours.”

“Some people get offended easily,” Le added.

“It’s important for a multicultural society to really have conversations, to break down those differences, and actually learn to live with one another despite those difference.”

“I can proudly say that we celebrate diversity here [in my electorate of Fowler].”