Which departments are the biggest winners and losers in this year’s budget? We’ve broken the budget documents down to show you where the money’s going - and where it isn’t.
Tuesday’s budget will show there has been an improvement of $10.5 billion in the bottom line. The update forecasted a deficit of $1.1 billion for 2023-24.
Peter Whiteford, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
Unemployment and related payments for working-age people were given a welcome boost in last year’s budget. But they remain well below pensions, and far from adequate.
Peter Martin, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
The thing to look for is the “fiscal strategy”. For the past quarter-century, it’s provided a surprisingly accurate insight into what each budget is doing.
Next month’s budget is an opportunity for the government to move beyond its ‘I feel your pain’ rhetoric to a HomeKeeper-style policy for this particular group of temporarily squeezed Australians.
In the lead-up to the 2024 federal budget, there was hope for investments in water management and water-related infrastructure. Those hopes were misplaced.
Peter Martin, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
Former treasury boss Ken Henry has fessed up to helping dumb down debates about tax and budgets to lists of winners and losers. He says what matters is what wins rather than who.