The price rises are not small but large and most people are feeling the pinch.

Low-income earners to people receiving social welfare or in many cases people receiving charitable support are living below the poverty line and suffering hardship — there are more than 2.2 million people below the poverty line.

Ruthless, cruel and nasty state governments have added serious economic injury on top of the Gillard government’s cruel attacks on low-income Australians like single mothers.

The price rises in energy cannot be justified and should have been stopped at both state and federal levels.

Clearly our local politicians have failed to act, but why would they?

They are all wealthy themselves taking advantage of big politician salaries and allowances that in effect protect them from any financial pain.

If things even look threatening to them they, Labor and Liberal-National, grant themselves huge pay increases.

So if our politicians don’t feel any pain how can they possibly have empathy for average citizens?

So why do we average citizens keep voting for professionally elite and wealthy people who by indisputable evidence are only looking after themselves?

— ALAN J. LAPPIN,

Boorhaman North