Rorts and slush funds : Trillion dollar debt hides Coalition s dubious economic record 13/05/2021|8min
Shadow Treasurer Jim Chalmers has claimed Labor can “spend money more effectively” than the Morrison government.
“We want the economy to work for people and not the other way around and what that means is getting the budget settings right so that it fits the times,” he told Sky News.
“Our criticism of the government isn’t just the kind of dumpster fire of hypocrisy and inconsistency around debt and deficit.”
“Our criticism of the government is within that trillion dollars of debt there’s all these rorts that they accumulated over the last eight long years and in the government there’s 21 different slush funds to get them through an election”.
Morrison government has ‘deficit of vision’12/05/2021|5min
Shadow Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the deficit of vision is among the many deficits in Tuesday night’s budget.
“The budget was an opportunity to say to Australians this is what the vaccination rollout looks like,” he said.
“This is what it means for the economy, and these are the costs and consequences of getting it so badly and shambolically wrong at this point.
“We need clarity on the vaccination rollout, the lack of clarity is compromising the recovery and costing jobs.”
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COVID-19 Ushers in Era of Big Government Spending in Australia
Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced a spending bonanza in Tuesday night’s budget speech, signalling a complete shift by the normally fiscally conservative Coalition government.
Frydenberg has defended the budget, which allocates billions across most sectors of society, manifesting in the form of tax breaks, job training programs, and boosting of critical services. It also precedes the next federal election, which is due between August and May next year.
“This has been the most significant economic shock since the Great Depression,” Frydenberg told the ABC, saying the impact of COVID-19 “dwarfed” the 2008 Global Financial Crisis.
Shadow Treasurer Jim Chalmers has slammed the government’s budget as an “admission of failure” for not improving wage growth.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg handed down his government’s budget on Tuesday night with a sharp focus on lowering the unemployment rate, but did admit the measures will not result in wages growth.
The budget paper said lower unemployment and broader economic strength would lead to wages beginning to “pick up” towards the end of the forecast period.
Mr Chalmers told Sky News the “real wages cut” is an admission of failure on behalf of the treasurer and the Morrison government.
“Australian working people still go backwards in the government’s budget which is a pretty extraordinary admission of failure,” he said.
“There are also other issues which are preventing people from getting good, secure, well-payed jobs. The industrial relations system, the childcare system, skills and training.
“(There are) a whole range of issues which haven’
Ahead of Budget night Treasurer Josh Frydenberg joins Kieran Gilbert on
Sunday Agenda today.
The Treasurer has granted unprecedented access to his home in Melbourne. Former Prime Minister John Howard also joins for his insight into Frydenberg’s Budget blueprint and political ascendancy.
Further coverage and analysis begins on SKY News on Tuesday.
Then on Tuesday 11 May, the countdown to the Treasurer’s Budget address begins at 5:30am with Peter Stefanovic on First Edition.
From 9:00am, Laura Jayes will be joined by leading economists to discuss the potential market and economic impact of the Government’s package during AM Agenda.