00:03Try not to eat meal all the time, maybe just some instant noodles.
00:08Single mother of five working full time and renting, Mia John Toru is struggling to keep afloat.
00:14It was alright before 2024, but now it's almost like half of your salary or 60% of your salary
00:20goes on your accommodation.
00:22It's a similar story for many West Australians facing growing expenses and a stubborn housing crunch.
00:28I wish the government can give everyone a first home.
00:31Like, have you got a first home? No.
00:34Okay, well, how can you get your home? Amazing, you only need one home.
00:39This year's budget has big money, billions going into building new homes, but that will take time.
00:44We better hurry up.
00:45To address short-term pressures facing families, over $1 billion is going towards cost of living relief.
00:51Every kid in school will receive another assistance payment up to $250 for things like books and stationery.
00:59A pool of $51 million will go towards electricity bill relief for struggling families on concessions.
01:05And $44 million will go towards supporting grand carers and foster carers.
01:09The question is how much relief these measures will provide before the benefits of the government's big infrastructure spends flow
01:17on to West Australians.
01:19This is a government that has forgotten the here and now.
01:23Pushing on with big, expensive infrastructure projects that aren't needed right now.
01:28If you look at the 1,300 pages that are in these three volumes of budget papers, you will not
01:34find the word poverty once.
01:36For many, it's a word they don't want to become too familiar with.
01:40It's always good to get them some relief.
01:42But I always say, I think it's the wrong relief they're looking at.
01:45They're looking at the wrong place.
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