On 10 Sep 2026, I gave a Speech on the Passenger Movement Charge
Transcript:
Ms WATSON-BROWN:
The Passenger Movement Charge Amendment Bill increases the cost of travelling out of Australia, for any reason.
Whether you’re going to see loved ones, responding to a family emergency, or just taking a well-earned break, this Bill makes your flight more expensive.
In a cost of living crisis, should this really be a government priority?
Taxing your family holiday, meanwhile letting the big gas corporations get away with not paying their fair share.
That tells you everything about this government, which time and again chooses the interests of big business and the fossil fuel industry over ordinary people.
As it stands, this Bill simply makes the cost of living challenge worse, and the Greens cannot support it in its current form.
Now the Greens and I are also pushing for real consumer protections for travellers.
We want to see a fair set of rules, so people can get full refunds and proper compensation in case of flight cancellations and delays.
Let’s see what the government proposes, but let me be clear: we cannot support reforms that will make the cost of living worse. In an affordability crisis, the Greens won’t apologise for opposing a Labor government move that will make things even harder for everyday people.
And just quickly on climate.
This Bill will not have any impact on reducing emissions from air travel.
There is no other way to get overseas, people will still fly. The extra fee won’t deter them, it will just make things harder.
If the government were serious about reducing emissions from air travel they would fast-track high-speed rail so we can start to make significant reductions in domestic flights.
Labor would rather tax your trip to Bali than tax a gas corporation.
So get this. Gas corporation Santos makes $47 billion over the last ten years and pays no tax.
But Labor’s not willing to tax them. They are, however, happy to tax your next holiday.
Hidden in the last federal budget, the government quietly announced a $10 hike in airline ticket charges - paid by the customer, not by the airline.
Yes, you heard me right, the government wants to increase airline ticket charges - not abolish hidden fees, but increase them.
No one likes those charges. You go online to see how much a flight costs, plan your itinerary, then discover the hidden fees. For some flights, these fees can be hundreds of dollars per person, making an annual holiday simply unaffordable for many families.
And it’s not as if the government has no other choice. If they need more money for services, they could do what nearly 70% of Australians want, and tax gas exports. The government already collects the same amount of money from passport fees, as they get from the gas industry. It collects five times the amount from visa applications, as they get from the gas industry. What a joke!
My message to Labor is this: don’t tax the family holiday. Tax gas.