Jim Chalmers’ lucky budget surplus is no comfort to workers whose pay is shrinking

The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, at a Myefo press conference at Parliament House in Canberra on Wednesday. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

When it comes to being a treasurer, it is better to be good than lucky.

Peter Costello, through no skill of his own, presided over a period where each budget update would see a better figure projected and either a smaller deficit or a bigger surplus. Wayne Swan, through no fault of his own, presided over a period when the global financial crisis smashed the budget projections.