Billionaire wealth is soaring as the cost of living crisis deepens

Today in Parliament, Abigail gave notice of a motion detailing Oxfam’s 2026 inequality report revealing extreme and growing billionaire wealth alongside rising poverty and inequality.

Abigail said:

I give notice that on the next sitting day I will move:

(1) That this House notes the publication of Oxfam International’s report “Resisting the Rule of the Rich: Defending Freedom Against Billionaire Power” on 19 January 2026, which revealed that:

the number of billionaires surpassed 3,000 for the first time during 2025, and the level of billionaire wealth is now higher than at any time in history;
since 2020, the collective wealth of the world’s billionaires grew by 81 percent, or $8.2 trillion, which would be enough to eradicate global poverty 26 times over;
the world’s 12 richest billionaires have more wealth than the poorest half of humanity, or more than four billion people;
meanwhile, one in four people globally face hunger, and the reduction of poverty has largely ground to a halt;
Australia’s 48 billionaires hold more wealth than the bottom 40 percent of the population combined, almost 11 million people;
average Australian billionaires’ wealth grew by almost $600,000 a day in 2025 alone, or over $10.5 billion collectively;
the growth in wealth of Australia’s richest man and largest landlord, billionaire property developer Harry Triguboff in the last year alone is equal to the amount required to fund the construction of 10,600 homes;
a 5 percent wealth tax on Australia’s billionaires just last year could have raised $17.4 billion, enough to deliver cheap childcare for all families, extend energy bill relief for another two years, and increase the humanitarian budget almost seven times over;
governments worldwide are making the wrong choice, choosing to defend wealth not freedom and failing ordinary people by capitulating to the increasingly blatant influence of the rich;
working in solidarity and collaboration across our movements and organisations is vital to tackling our common challenges and changing narratives, and we must work together to build a worldwide people’s movement to defend our rights, fight for a more equal world and demand an end to inequality and oligarchy;
governments have the power to radically reduce economic inequality by implementing bold, progressive policy agendas and ambitious reforms to rewire our economies and societies for a more equal future; and
concrete steps that governments can and should take include:
- (i) effectively taxing the super-rich to reduce their economic power, including broad-base taxes on income and wealth at high enough rates to reduce massive levels of inequality;
- (ii) regulate lobbying and revolving doors between public office and private interests through independent regulatory bodies, mandatory public lobby registers, stronger conflict of interest rules and implementing cooling-off periods to close revolving doors between big business and government;
- (iii) promote media independence and prevent concentration of media ownership; and
- (iv) protect and promote freedom of expression, assembly and association for citizens, movements, journalists and organisations to be able to organise, speak up and protest.

(2) That this House further notes that Oxfam Australia is calling on the Australian government to take urgent action to tax the super-rich and remove tax breaks that allow them to amass extreme wealth, including:

introducing a net wealth tax on the richest 0.5 percent, with rates increasing in accordance with increased wealth;
ending the capital gains tax discount for individuals and trusts; and
phasing out negative gearing to close loopholes that allow wealthy individuals to pay less tax.

(3) That this House calls on the NSW government to take urgent action to address the widening economic inequality driving more people in our state into poverty, financial uncertainty, housing stress, homelessness and food insecurity, by advocating to the Australian government on behalf of the people of NSW for systemic progressive tax reform.

5 February 2026

A UNIVERSAL WELLBEING PAYMENT FOR NSW

No matter who you are or what you do, everyone has the right to share in the wellbeing of our country.

But at the moment the essentials so many of us need – a place to call home, food on the table, and everyday essentials like electricity, internet, medicine and water – are simply out of reach.

Instead of supporting us, our government is choosing to prop up huge corporations with massive subsidies, and to give away our collective wealth through record tax cuts for the wealthy. Meanwhile, the rest of us are left to live paycheck to paycheck or trapped in the dehumanising bureaucracy of our existing welfare system.

Now, in the midst of a pandemic, and following quickly on the heels of the bushfire crisis, more of us than ever before are experiencing what it’s like to lose our jobs, be without a home, or worry about where the food for our next meal will come from.

It’s time for us to choose to prioritise the wellbeing of everyone.

And that’s exactly what the Universal Wellbeing Payment will do.

It’s a regular payment made to each of us to ensure our minimum standard of wellbeing. No means testing, no bureaucracy, no strings attached.

It’s the amount you’re owed simply for being a participant in our society.

It means you are free to live your life and contribute to society as you see fit, whether you’re a carer, an artist, a student, a parent, an entrepreneur – you can get on with what you need to do, knowing that you will always be supported regardless of your income.

It means that we’re choosing to structure our economy for the benefit of all of us, not using our collective wealth to prop up the interests of big business and the wealthy few.

It means you will always have what you need to live a good life, no matter what.

The Universal Wellbeing Payment is for everyone. Help us make it happen.

For more information, head to universalwellbeingpayment.com.au

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Billionaire wealth is soaring as the cost of living crisis deepens

A UNIVERSAL WELLBEING PAYMENT FOR NSW

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