Treasurer Jim Chalmers handed down Australia’s economic plan last night for the next four years, with tangible benefits for Australians in what some call a “band-aid” budget.
Chalmers announced energy bill relief for every Australian household, Stage 3 tax cuts and $3 billion in student debt being wiped.
The Treasury’s optimistic new forecast showed inflation will drop below 3% by Christmas.
Critics have described it as a “band-aid” budget that relies on a lot of variables for its economic outlook, benefits billionaires and multinationals and could actually make inflation worse.
Hosts of The Briefing reporter Sacha Barbour Gatt and 7 News anchor Katrina Blowers break down the budget and how it will impact you:
Here are some key points from the top five categories of the budget impacting Australian families. Hear more about these topics on this episode of The Briefing.
1. Cost of Living Support
All Australians will get $300 off their energy bills, to be automatically credited to electricity bills as $75 saving per quarter.
Rent assistance will be increased by 10 per cent, benefiting people on jobseeker, youth allowance, carer payment, and more.
2. Tax Cut For All Australians
All Australian taxpayers will get a tax cut averaging $1888 a year or $36 a week from July 1.
84 per cent of people will be better off compared to ScoMo’s original Stage 3 tax cut plan.
3. Student Fees Wiped
$3bn in student debt wiped for more than 3 million Australians, backdated to July 1, 2023. Those with an average HECS debt of $26,500 would save $1,200.
Financial support during practical training for nursing, teaching, social work students. $350 million for fee-free uni-ready courses, $90 million for fee-free TAFE and VET places and pre-apprenticeships.
4. Women’s Equality
Superannuation will be paid on govt-funded paid parental leave from July 2025. This aims to help close the 25 per cent gap in retirement incomes between men and women.
Women’s health initiatives worth $56 million – including $12.5 million for free period products for Aboriginal communities, $7 million in support for women and families who have suffered miscarriage and more.
5. Interest Rates & Inflation
Treasury is optimistically forecasting inflation will fall to the target band of under 3% by the end of this year.
What happens with inflation will decide when or if the Reserve Bank cuts (or raises) interest rates. The Budget predicts interest rate cuts from mid-next year.
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