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Federal budget

Today

Larry Marshall speaks at CEDA’s climate and energy forum.

Ex CSIRO boss would pick different ‘winners’ in $1b quantum push

Larry Marshall, former CEO of CSIRO, says taxpayer money should be targeted at points in the quantum computing supply chain, not the finished product.

  • Liam Walsh
The spending story will be the most important part of Jim Chalmers’ budget.

The government goes bold to poke the inflation bear

The Albanese government, after being cautious with its spending in 2022 and 2023, has decided to take risks this year. The greatest is that it brings the RBA off the bench.

  • Chris Richardson
Anthony Albanese used a visit to Beef Week on Tuesday to promote the Future Made in Australia Act.

Chalmers locks in business tax breaks to help Made in Australia

The budget will contain tax breaks for investors to turbocharge the government’s Future Made in Australia Act, Jim Chalmers has confirmed.

  • Phillip Coorey
The lucky treasurer: His predecessors have been extremely lucky to receive big tax revenue windfalls from the mining boom, but none have been as lucky as Jim Chalmers.

Australia’s ‘dumb’ luck budget in one extraordinary chart

Treasurers have been extremely lucky to receive big tax revenue windfalls from the China-driven mining boom, but none have been as lucky as Jim Chalmers.

  • John Kehoe
Jim Chalmers will deliver his third federal budget on May 14

Everything we know about the budget, so far

Treasurer Jim Chalmers will hand down Labor’s third budget on May 14. Here are all the spending measures we know about so far.

  • Updated
  • Tom McIlroy
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during a walk through of Beef2024 in Rockhampton on Tuesday.

Labor’s plan to ‘restore faith’ in Qld

Anthony Albanese said Labor’s Future Made in Australia Act was key to “restore faith” with blue-collar Queenslanders, who deserted the party in 2019 over the confused position on the Adani coal mine.

  • Phillip Coorey

Yesterday

Premier Roger Cook and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Critical minerals boost from $566m plan to fully map Australia

Deposits of critical minerals and rare earths badly needed for the development of renewable energy technologies will be mapped, Anthony Albanese says.

  • Tom McIlroy
The Qantas board has more to do to recover its national stnading.

Qantas must atone for all old baggage

Readers’ letters on the Qantas settlement; franking credits for retirees; the Coalition push for nuclear power; and Israel’s closure of Al Jazeera.

The core size of the public service is to be reduced as a share of the state economy.

Victorian government to shrink for first time in 15 years

Victorian budget deficit rises, but surplus predictions brought forward; Biden warns Netanyahu to pursue ceasefire, not invasion. Follow updates here.

  • Updated
  • Maxim Shanahan
The RBA’s latest outlook for the economy means interest rates will need to stay higher for longer.

Petrol, strong jobs market stoking inflation: RBA

The central bank on Tuesday upgraded its near-term forecasts for headline inflation and pushed back the likelihood of interest rate relief until mid-2025.

  • Ronald Mizen
Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock during her post-meeting press conference in Sydney on Tuesday.

Reserve Bank on high alert for rate rise

The RBA is “very alert” to the cost of stubbornly high inflation lingering in the economy, signalling interest rates will need to stay higher for longer.

  • Ronald Mizen

This Month

Anthony Albanese

Albanese pledges $500m for drought relief as Queensland fight heats up

Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton are squaring off at Beef Week in Rockhampton as the political fight in central Queensland gathers pace.

  • Phillip Coorey
Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Finance Minister Katy Gallagher ahead of next week’s federal budget.

Chalmers’ budget to fight inflation first, spend up big second

Treasurer Jim Chalmers says his budget next week will avoid a “scorched earth” approach to fight inflation, but spending will come in the out years.

  • Ronald Mizen
Western Sydney communities are struggling with overcrowded infrastructure.

Labor warned on overheating western Sydney road spend

Labor said on Monday that its spending in the population growth area was now more than $17.3 billion. 

  • Tom McIlroy
Hayley Creed has to undertake 19 weeks of unpaid placements during her degree to become a high school teacher.

The students to get Labor’s new ‘prac payment’, and who misses out

Too strict means-testing would make the federal government’s newly announced prac payment for university and TAFE students out of reach.

  • Julie Hare
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Displaced Palestinians at a temporary camp in Rafah this month.

Israel warns Palestinians to evacuate Rafah ahead of possible attacks

Eastern Rafah residents told to evacuate; Chalmers warns against slash-and-burn approach to spending; Qantas settlement a quick win for consumers; murdered Australian surfers identified in Mexico. How the day unfolded.

  • Tom Burton
Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth.

Deeming cliff looms for 850k aged pensioners, welfare recipients

With inflation running high and cost-of-living pressures continuing to plague households, the government is being pressured to extend the freeze, or at least phase in, a higher deeming rate in the budget.

  • Ronald Mizen
Treasurer Jim Chalmers will deliver the budget on May 14.

Big government spending to widen budget deficits

Next week’s federal budget will be expansionary, not contractionary as some economists have called for, and will do less to contain inflation and interest rate pressures than Jim Chalmers’ previous surplus budgets.

  • John Kehoe
Midwifery students will be among those to receive a weekly payment during compulsory placements.

Labor to give teaching, nursing students $320 per week payment

Teaching, nursing, midwifery and social work students will receive a weekly payment to help offset the costs of mandatory placements.

  • Julie Hare
Jim Chalmers and Michele Bullock have no one to blame. They should have seen what was happening in the US.

Governor and treasurer share blame for sticky inflation

Michele Bullock and Jim Chalmers had fair warning about the need for decisive action.

  • Steven Hamilton