The Committee's first interim report showed that many Australians are now doing it tough and facing unprecedented economic pressures. Evidence to the Committee showed that the current cost of living crisis has had a very negative effect on many Australians, particularly because of the severity of price rises in key areas of household expenditure, and the prolonged and incremental pressures they have faced on a number of fronts.

This second interim report of the committee consists of five chapters:

• The first chapter sets out the administration of the inquiry and summarises the findings of the committee’s first interim report. It then provides an overview of the cost of living crisis, and an analysis of the current government’s fiscal and regulatory approach;
• Chapter 2 outlines growing pressures in the cost of food and groceries, as well as in travel and transport;
• Chapter 3 considers energy prices, and the effects of higher prices on households, business and industry;
• Chapter 4 sets out issues in housing, both for mortgage holders and for renters; and
• Chapter 5 looks at how government support for the not-for-profit and charity sector could be improved, to address growing need in the Australian community.

All chapters conclude with a section outlining the committee views and any relevant recommendations. 

Key recommendations:

• The Committee recommends that the Australian government, in keeping with the principles of the original Personal Income Tax Cuts, legislate to deliver a lower, simpler, and fairer tax system that fights bracket creep and enshrines aspiration in the tax system.
• The Australian government should conduct a stocktake of Commonwealth regulation relating to small-to-medium enterprises, with a view to reducing the ‘costs of doing business’ that have exacerbated the cost of living crisis.
• The Committee recommends that the Australian government should lift Australia's ban on nuclear energy, to allow consideration of it as a cost-efficient, reliable and low-emissions energy source.
• The Committee recommends that the Australian government consider policies, including tax deductions, that encourage private sector donations to food and hunger relief charities as a means to support those in desperate need in the cost of living crisis.