What we learned, Tuesday 25 March (budget day)
For a budget we thought we were skipping due to the election, it’s been somewhat eventful. Here’s what made the headlines:
The Albanese government announced a tax cut “top up” as the centrepiece of its pre-election budget. It will give the average worker about $538 extra in their pay packets per year from mid-2027. You can read all about that here.
The Coalition has said it won’t back Labor’s tax cuts but refuses to say whether it will be announcing any income tax cuts of their own.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the budget is “responsible” and his tax cuts are fiscally responsible.
There’s been plenty of reaction so far, some positive, some not so much. The ACTU has welcomed the tax cuts and ban on non-compete clauses, while the business council has supported the cuts but said the government should have done more to boost the private sector.
And earlier today there were some dramatic scenes around parliament over the government’s last-minute legislation to protect the salmon industry in Tasmania (a bill which environmentalists say will further harm an endangered species of fish – the Maugean skate). They passed the House about 6pm.
Thank you so much for joining me on the blog this evening, I’ll be back for more with you bright and early tomorrow morning (with plenty of caffeine) for more action from Parliament House.
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Psychiatrists say no meaningful investment to solve workforce crisis
The nation’s peak body for psychiatrists has expressed its disappointment in this budget being no difference from previous ones in offering the mental health system “crumbs”.
Dr Elizabeth Moore, the president of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP), said:
The word ‘psychiatry’ has only been mentioned once in tonight’s budget papers to refer to a pre-existing program. There has been no meaningful investment in growing the psychiatry workforce.
It is particularly striking – especially as workforce shortages continue to bite and bring the system to its knees in parts of the country.
We need to grow the mental health workforce and match mental health funding to the level of community need, or the system will keep collapsing under pressure.
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