Sunrise presenter Nat Barr challenged Treasurer Jim Chalmers over Australia’s high interest rates, government spending and tax burden as households face the prospect of higher mortgage repayments. She argued that international comparisons and strong economic indicators offered little comfort to people dealing with rising living costs, while Chalmers said Australia’s performance should be assessed alongside its growth, employment and debt levels.

The Reserve Bank was widely expected to raise the cash rate from 4.35 to 4.60 per cent, which Barr said would leave Australia with the developed world’s second-highest rate, behind Iceland. She cited government spending at 26.9 per cent of GDP, its highest non-pandemic level since about 1986; Chalmers said spending had fallen as a share of the economy and that the latest budget deficit was around half the level his government inherited, with debt $10 billion lower. He also disputed Barr’s claim that he was on course to be Australia’s highest-taxing treasurer, saying tax levels were below those under former treasurer Peter Costello.