The Prime Minister has knocked back accusations he is trying to buy votes with tax cuts and one-off payments ahead of the election, arguing his budget is targeting immediate cost of living pressures.
Last night's federal budget included a halving of the fuel excise for six months in a bid to counter soaring costs at the bowser, as well as payments of $250 dollars for pensioners and welfare recipients to be available from April.
Extra one-off tax breaks for low and middle-income earners will be also available from the end of this financial year.
The federal opposition has accused the Coalition of using its pre-election budget to bribe voters.
"This has all the sincerity of a fake tan," Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese told ABC News Breakfast.
But Scott Morrison said the reason payments were being offered in the next couple of months was because of the immediate and "real" cost of living pressures being experienced by Australians across the country.
"It's targeted because we're dealing with the pressures that exist right now," the Prime Minister told the ABC's AM program.
"We want to make sure that people are coming through this latest shock — one of the biggest energy shocks we've seen in a generation — by delivering real cost of living relief right now through tax cuts, through cutting excise, tax cuts through their personal income tax.
"And for those on fixed incomes or pensions, ensuring that they're getting additional support right now, because right now is when they need it."
Opposition supports 'many of the measures'
The federal opposition said it would back the fuel excise cut, even though it might be left with the prospect of raising the tax later this year if it won power in May.
Mr Albanese said a Labor government would deliver another budget later this year, for which it would have to consider whether raising the fuel excise was appropriate.
"We're not getting ahead of ourselves," he told the ABC AM.
"But we also understand the pressures that will be there on the budget because of this government treating taxpayers' money as if it's Liberal Party money.
The Labor leader was asked whether he would unpick the measures announced by the Treasurer if he became prime minister in May.
He said his party supported "many of the measures", but argued there were many missed opportunities when it came to training the Australian workforce in areas experiencing critical skill shortages.
Labor being 'stupid or misleading', Finance Minister says
Federal Labor has also claimed there were $3 billion in secret cuts in last night's budget.
Shadow Treasurer Jim Chalmers told ABC's RN the cuts were contained in a table about decisions that had been made since the mid-year budget update, but not yet announced.
"Josh Frydenberg needs to come clean," he said.
But Finance Minister Simon Birmingham told Sky News the Labor Party had incorrectly interpreted the papers.
"We were finalising content in the details of that, but we provisioned for it in the responsible way you do. It now shifts from that budget line to the other one," he said.
"So it's a bit of either complete stupidity from the Labor Party unable to read the budget papers, or just being completely misleading in the way they're presenting it."
Mr Albanese is scheduled to deliver his budget reply speech on Thursday night.
