Treasurer Jim Chalmers has delivered his fourth federal budget, setting the stage for the upcoming federal election that is likely to be called in a matter of days.

Much of the budget targets individuals, offering significant cost-of-living relief to attract voters before they go to the polls.

Key measures for individuals include:

  • Tax cuts for all
  • Higher threshold for the Medicare levy
  • Debt reduction for university students
  • More free vocational education placements
  • Three days of subsidised childcare with no activity testing
  • Energy bill relief
  • Increased incentives for bulk-billing GPs
  • Lower prices on PBS-listed medicines
  • Slight increase in support for first-home buyers

Business support is minimal, with a few exceptions:

  • A two-year freeze on the beer excise for brewers
  • $20 million to promote Australian-made products
  • $2 billion for green aluminium and $1 billion for green steel production
  • Incentives for construction apprentices and a new national licensing scheme for electricians.

Unfortunately, this will be funded by an increased Government budget deficit; with the net impact of the budget expected to lead to increased spending of $103 million in 2025/26, $3.4 billion in 2026/27, $6.1 billion in 2027/28 and $4.5 billion in 2028/29.

If you have any queries in relation to the information we have provided, please contact our office.

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