Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie attacks Labor MP Clare O’Neill over inflation in fiery Sunrise clash

A fiery on-air showdown has erupted on Sunrise, with Housing Minister Clare O’Neill and Nationals Senate Leader Bridget McKenzie clashing over who is to blame for rising interest rates following the Reserve Bank’s decision to lift the cash rate by 0.25 per cent.

The heated exchange came as families brace for higher mortgage repayments, with O’Neill conceding the rate rise would be “very unwelcome around kitchen tables around the country”.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Rate hike sparks inflation blame game in parliament

“Our government right now is thinking really deeply about those families where you’re sitting around the kitchen table with a pile of unpaid bills next to you and thinking, how are we going to make this work with an interest rate increase,” O’Neill said.

She insisted the government was walking a careful line between easing household pressure and avoiding further inflation.

“The government’s got a really important job here, and that is how we can provide as much cost-of-living support for families to help them manage this change without contributing to the inflation problem,” she said.

“You saw our government do that over the past three-and-a-half years, tax cuts for every taxpayer, reductions in student debt, cheaper medicines, massive increases in bulk billing, energy bill relief, all of those things have been really important contributors. I want everyone at home to know that our government’s only focus right now is on you.”

McKenzie immediately pushed back, accusing Labor of driving inflation through unchecked spending and ignoring repeated warnings from global economic bodies.

“We’ve seen warnings from the IMF, from the OECD, from international ratings agencies, from economists, for a long time, telling the treasurer, telling the Labor government that this will lead to a spike in inflation, which means the costs of goods and services go up right across our economy, and eventually the Reserve Bank will have to pull the rate lever to try and cool the economy and that’s exactly what’s happened,” McKenzie said.

“They’ve failed to make the tough decisions that they had to make over the last four years,” she said.

The debate escalated, with O’Neill defending Labor’s economic record, pointing to two budget surpluses after what she described as “a trillion dollars of Liberal debt” and a decade of deficits.

McKenzie dismissed that defence, firing back, “It’s always someone else’s fault, Clare”.

Sunrise host Nat Barr stepped in to refocus the discussion, telling O’Neill, “Four years in [to the government’s term], let’s talk about now”.

“I’m actually talking about the government’s record, Nat, and the fact that we have done some really important work to bring the budget back into balance, but no one pretends that that job is finished or done. This is a generational challenge for the country to bring the budget back into balance, and the hard work on that happens each and every budget,” O’Neill said.

“As we come into the next budget in May, we will be doing more thinking about this.”

“You’re not doing it,” McKenzie interjected.

The clash intensified as McKenzie warned inflation was projected to rise to 4 per cent, calling it “terrifying” for households.

“Clare, this is homegrown. It’s projected to go higher; that’s what’s terrifying households right now,” she said.

“You can’t say that you’re not in charge, that you’re not responsible for the situation that our economy faces right now.”

She accused the government of broken promises and policy failures, citing green energy prices, industrial relations and the NDIS.

“You can come on these programs and tell Australians who are hurting that you’re going to do your best ... Cooee, you are in charge and have been for four years,” McKenzie said.

O’Neill responded sharply, calling the criticism “outrageous” and accusing the opposition of being distracted by internal politics.

“That is an outrageous comment from someone who’s in a political party that’s coming to Canberra every week, not even thinking about the people they represent here but instead playing ridiculous parlour games focusing on careers and ambitions,” she said.

“Come on, people elected you here to represent them, and you spend all your time in coffees and gossip, and it’s just disgraceful.”

O’Neill insisted the government was acting responsibly in the face of rising pressure on households.

“We behave responsibly,” she added.

“And yet here we are,” McKenzie replied.

“Yes, there’s issues facing the country, but at least you’ve got a government in charge that’s focused on them,” O’Neill shot back.

Meanwhile, Coalition tensions continue to simmer off air, with Liberal leader Sussan Ley and Nationals leader David Littleproud at odds over whether to reunite the Coalition.

McKenzie refused to comment on the ongoing negotiations, saying discussions between the two leaders were confidential, though she confirmed Australians were “sick and tired of politics”.

The Opposition has announced it will launch a Senate inquiry into the government’s handling of inflation, ensuring the battle seen on Sunrise is unlikely to cool anytime soon.