Consumer watchdog will crack down on petrol price gouging when tax cut ends, Labor says

The federal treasurer, Jim Chalmers, has asked the competition watchdog to crack down hard on any price gouging when the petrol excise cut expires at the end of September.

The government has also revealed that 4.7 million Australians will see an increase in support payments from 20 September due to regular indexation. Payments including the pension and jobseeker will rise by 4% in line with the consumer price index in the six months to June.

Parliament resumes for the final sitting fortnight before the October budget on Monday with cost of living top of mind. The Reserve Bank on Tuesday will probably further lift the official interest rate.

With petrol prices soaring due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, drivers were given some relief at the pumps in March when the Morrison government halved excise to 22.1 cents a litre at a cost of $3bn to the budget. The Albanese government repeatedly warned it was unlikely to extend the measure.

The increase would be the fifth consecutive rise after the bank began hiking the cash rate in May from the 0.1% emergency level set in November 2020.

Social security payments will rise by 4%, pushing the age pension, disability support pension and carer payment up by $38.90 a fortnight for singles and $58.80 for couples.

The maximum rate of the pension will increase to $1,026.50 a fortnight for singles and $773.80 for each member of a pensioner couple or $1,547.60 per couple, including the pension and energy supplements.

Jobseeker, parenting payments, Abstudy and rent assistance will also increase.

The rate of jobseeker for singles without children will increase by $25.70 a fortnight to a maximum of $677.20 while parenting payments for singles will increase by $35.20 per fortnight to $927.40.

Despite calls at the jobs summit to raise jobseeker from groups including the Australian Council of Social Services, the Albanese government has said it will not do so in the October budget.