The federal treasurer says the government will need to find billions in extra funding to keep a range of crucial programs afloat.
Jim Chalmers says the former coalition government left behind an array of "zombie measures" in the federal budget that clearly needed ongoing financing but were not funded beyond mid-2023.
This includes Australia's national online medical records system, the body responsible for keeping children safe online and the agency tasked with disposing of radioactive waste.
"This is how the opposition booby-trapped the budget, they left behind all of these programs which are not funded in an ongoing way," Dr Chalmers told parliament on Monday.
In the October budget, the government spent about $4 billion to keep expiring measures afloat.
"Once again in May we will need to find billions of dollars to make up for those opposite making big announcements but not putting them in the budget," he said.
In a speech last week, the treasurer outlined eight areas of heavy lifting for the budget, including providing responsible cost-of-living relief, funding AUKUS and other national security priorities, and exercising restraint in the interests of budget repair.
The budget will be released on May 9.
