Opinion
It didn’t take long for the Albanese government to revert to Labor type. For all the hoopla over Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ two budget surpluses, what was ignored is that those were essentially windfall gains — due entirely to an unexpected surge in Chinese demand for iron ore, as well as high global demand for coal and gas. Not to mention the sugar hit of record-high immigration: a literal million people imported, solely to technically boost the budget bottom line.
Now, like a drunk who’s found fifty bucks on the footpath outside a brothel, Labor’s set on blowing the lot in order to try and buy a bit of love.
Canberra, we have a big problem: spending. Your spending, not ours, although it is our money at stake, with not much change out of $700bn this financial year.
Amid a cost-of-living crunch for families, the Albanese government continues to splurge at twice the rate of households.
According to the mid-year budget update, over this financial year and next, Labor’s spending will grow, after inflation, by a cumulative 4.9 per cent, compared with around 2.5 per cent for private consumption.
A wise government might use the unexpected windfall to pay down debt. Unfortunately, this is not a wise government — it’s a Labor government.
A Labor government in the poll shitter.
So, they do what Labor always do: spend, spend, spend.
Instead of seeing this bonanza in company and personal income tax as the gift from the fiscal gods that it is, Labor has been increasing its spending – not only adding juice short-term to an economy struggling with inflation but baking in forever commitments in health, aged care, disability services, defence and a larger public service.
As well, there is a range of off-budget grants, soft loans and co-investments that will fund Labor’s green new deal of local manufacturing and renewable energy projects.
The Australian
Electing a Labor government is like buying a whole bunch of grown-up toys on the credit card: you’ll end up forever paying off the debt that a foolish splurge on short-term gratification heaped on your head. Nowhere is this clearer than in the case of the NDIS: Julia Gillard warmed the hearts of the luvvies with a feel-good policy — which, a decade down the road, is now the single biggest drain on the public purse, and growing exponentially.
As Scott Morrison rebuked Anthony Albanese during the last election campaign, Labor is great at the “big vision” stuff — but it’s always other people who have to pay for it.
Australians will be paying for Albanese and Chalmers long after they’re turfed out.
Just as Victorians are still paying through the nose for their idiotic infatuation with another Labor leader.
Victoria is already the most indebted state in Australia, but Tuesday’s budget will show that net debt will continue to climb, peaking at 25.2 per cent of gross state product by 2026-27, fuelled by cost blowouts on the North East Link and higher interest rates.
That ratio is higher than last year’s outlook when Treasurer Tim Pallas forecast net debt would climb to $171.4 billion by June 2027 – 24.5 per cent of gross state product (GSP).
And the state’s credit rating plunges even lower than it did in the dark days of Cain/Kirner. Back then, an AA+ rating was seen as a sign of complete fiscal failure.
Ratings agency S&P Global regards Victoria’s AA rating as stable but warned it would come under pressure if Tuesday’s budget did not control the infrastructure pipeline.
The Age
So, Victoria is teetering on the brink of falling below even AA?
Are Victorians still able to convince themselves that “Dan did a great job!”?