‘Australians need relief’: Peter Dutton and Labor MPs break ranks to urge the RBA to cut rates

Peter Dutton and several Labor MPs have urged the RBA to take action amid predictions homeowners are set to receive their first cut in four long years.

Peter Dutton has broken ranks to urge the Reserve Bank to cut rates by 25 basis points this week, warning that “Australians need relief”.

The Liberal leader and several Labor MPs including Sam Rae took the unusual step of urging the independent RBA to take action amid predictions Australian homeowners are set to receive their first cut in four long years.

“I really hope, for the sake of Australians who have had 12 interest rate increases under Mr Albanese, that there is a 25-point cut, or if it’s more than that, that’s fantastic, but families need relief,” Mr Dutton said.

Peter Dutton has urged the Reserve Bank to cut rates by 25 basis points. Picture: NewsWire / John Gass

Labor MPs urge the RBA to act

Mr Dutton isn’t the only politician throwing caution to the wind today, with Labor MPs also telling the RBA what to do.

As the Prime Minister prepares to call an election within weeks for April or May, many Labor MPs are praying for a rate cut for more reasons than simply mortgage relief.

“I want a cut,” Victorian Labor MP Sam Rae told Sky News. “My community needs a cut.

“I agree with the Treasurer and most other people that the RBA is independent, it will make its decision based on economics and not politics. And that is important.

“But my job is to stand up for my community and we need a cut.”

Liberal MP Angie Bell said everyone wants a rate cut but she was worried a modest cut worth around $100 a month wouldn’t “touch the sides” for average Australians.

“If the Reserve Bank does come to this decision, which I really hope they do for Australian families’ sake, it’s not going to make a big difference to make up for that $50,000 that a mortgage holder with a $750,000 mortgage has had to (find),” she told Sky News.

“What we need to do is rein in wasteful spending.”

MORE:Bank move could deny borrowers rate relief

There are predictions Australian homeowners are set to receive their first cut in four long years. Picture: iStock

Treasurer says still more work to do on cost of living

Treasurer Jim Chalmers, who has previously been accused of putting the hard word on the RBA to cut rates, was cautiously confident.

“I say the same thing to my colleagues privately that I say publicly. That is that we take no outcome for granted this week when it comes to decisions about interest rates,” he said.

“The respectful role that I will play in that is to not engage in a running commentary about their deliberations. I’ve made it really clear for some time now – I understand and respect their independent role.”

Mr Chalmers said there was more work to do in the cost of living space.

“In the almost three years that we’ve been in office, we’ve been able to get inflation down substantially, wages up, and keep unemployment low and that is our focus,” he said.

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Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers said there was more work to do in the cost of living space. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“The independent Reserve Bank has its own job to do.

“No matter what the Reserve Bank decides when they announce their decision tomorrow, the Albanese government’s focus won’t change.”

Jane Hume accuses Treasurer of “muscling the RBA”

As Peter Dutton called for a cut, position finance spokeswoman Jane Hume simultaneously accused Labor of “muscling” the RBA and pre-empting its decisions on rate cuts.

“Inflation has been too high for too long, and that’s because of decisions that the government has made and Michele Bullock, the Reserve Bank Governor, has said as much, that spending has been one of the pressures – it’s pushed inflation higher, meaning interest rates have stayed higher for longer,” Senator Hume told ABC.

“Of course, we want to see interest rates come down … There’s been 13 consecutive rate hikes, 12 of them under this government.

“If there is a reduction in interest rates, that will be a welcome relief to homeowners, to mortgage-holders that have suffered so much under this government.”