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ABC News
ABC News
Business
business reporter Gareth Hutchens

Here's what we know about the Albanese government's budget

Treasurer Jim Chalmers will hand down his first budget tonight.

He has spent the last few months lowering voters' expectations about this budget, saying it can't be a spend-athon.

But there have still been some big announcements in recent weeks.

"Pre-budget" announcements allow governments to shape how people are thinking about the budget before the big numbers are revealed on budget night, and this year's been no exception.

Here are some of the major policies that have already announced.

Paid parental leave

The Labor government plans to increase Australia's paid parental leave scheme to 26 weeks.

But it won't increase it to 26 weeks overnight.

It plans to stagger the increase over time, adding two extra weeks to the program every year.

Currently, the scheme grants 18 weeks for the primary caregiver, paid at the minimum wage, and two weeks for the partner (20 weeks in total for a couple).

But the government plans to add two extra weeks to the program in July 2024, then another two in July 2025, and another two in July 2026.

That will take it to a new maximum of 26 weeks (which is six months paid parental leave).

The six months of leave will also become more flexible, so they can be shared more equitably between both parents.

Except in the case of a single parent who can claim all of it.

The idea to increase paid parental leave had broad support at the government's jobs and skills summit last month.

Childcare

One of Labor’s hallmark election promises was to make childcare cheaper by increasing the subsidy for most Australian families.

The Albanese government has already introduced legislation to parliament to increase the subsidy for early childhood education for 90 per cent of families who earn up to $80,000 a year. 

The subsidy will then taper down by one percentage point for every $5,000 a family earns over $80,000, up to a combined income of $530,000 a year.

The new subsidy is slated to begin in July 2023.

The reforms were costed at $5.1 billion over the next four years during the election campaign, and they're expected to help an estimated 37,000 full-time workers return to the workforce.

The government has also announced the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will conduct a 12-month inquiry into the rising costs of childcare. 

It has said that inquiry will cost $10.8 million.

Aged care reforms

Labor has also introduced legislation to parliament to reform Australia's aged care sector and adopt recommendations made in the royal commission into aged care.  

Among the reforms are: raising the standard of care, ensuring there is a registered nurse in aged care homes 24/7, and increasing the transparency of the sector and its funding.  

That has been costed at $2.5 billion.

No more petrol price relief, but support for electric vehicles

The Morrison government's six-month reduction in the fuel excise, which cut the cost of petrol by over 20 cents a litre, ended last month.

And the Albanese government won't be extending it.

It said the tax reduction was costly and it was only designed to be a temporary reduction as part of the Morrison government's re-election pitch.

However, the Albanese government has introduced legislation to parliament to make electric vehicles cheaper.

It plans to remove fringe benefits tax and import tariffs from eligible electric vehicles, to lower the cost of electric vehicles and encourage their take-up.

It wants to make electric vehicles more affordable to help meet its emissions targets.

Tax

The low-and-medium income tax offset (LMITO) expired on 30 June, and the Albanese government won't be extending it.

It means our tax returns for the 2021-22 financial year will be the final one where workers earning under $126,000 will be receiving up to $1,500 as a tax offset.

There isn't expected to be any changes to the stage three tax cuts in this budget.

National Broadband Network (NBN)

The government says it will be moving forward with a $2.4 billion equity investment in the NBN over four years.

It says the investment will give 1.5 million homes and businesses the choice of upgrading to faster fibre broadband access by 2025.

It is part of a Labor election promise made a year ago.

Well-being budget

The treasurer has also said his budget will not only measure GDP, it will also measure well-being.

In an Australian first, a chapter of the budget will be dedicated to well-being and will outline how the government plans on measuring well-being as it moves forward.

Climate change impact

For the first time since the Abbott-government, Treasury has been asked to model the impact of climate change on the economy as part of the budget.

The government has also introduced legislation for a disaster ready fund designed to help fund projects to help mitigate and prepare for climate change, including projects like flood levees, cyclone shelters, fire breaks and evacuation centres.

It will provide up to $200m per year.

The budget's economic forecasts

Treasurer Chalmers will also use his budget to explain how quickly the global economic environment has deteriorated this year.

He's already said it will probably be necessary for the next few years to spend more money into the community than the government will raise in taxes, and that will be recorded as a budget "deficit".

He's said the floods in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania can be expected to increase the price of food significantly later this year.

He has said Treasury officials think annual inflation will peak at the end of this year around 7.75 per cent, before starting to decline in mid-2023.

But they also think the unemployment rate, which is 3.5 per cent, will probably start to rise next year to hit 4.5 per cent in 2023-24.

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