The Reserve Bank of Australia has delivered a ninth straight official interest rate rise to 3.35 per cent, a 10-year-high, and indicated 4 per cent-plus may be needed to tame high inflation despite the “painful squeeze” on households.

The rise intensified pressure on the Albanese government to do more over the cost of living, as the Coalition accused Labor of contributing to “upward pressure on interest rates”, in heated exchanges in parliament reminiscent of the political battles on rates during the Howard government.