‘Dacked’: Treasurer grilled on RBA Governor’s warning about tax cuts in the budget
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has come face-to-face with Today host Karl Stefanovic after yesterday’s horror rates news.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has denied he’s been “dacked” by the RBA governor Michelle Bullock on inflation after her warning of the impact on inflation of new tax cuts in the budget.
Amid speculation that the budget will include a one-off tax offset worth up to $300 for every worker, the Albanese Government is under fire over whether that could fuel inflation.
A temporary offset isn’t a cash handout per se, but it would mean you get a bigger tax cut in the financial year it applies.
Speaking this morning on the Today show, host Karl Stefanovic asked if the government would heed the Reserve Bank governors warning about the impact of “heaps of stimulus”.
“Good morning to you. How does it feel to get fiscally dacked by the Reserve Bank Governor?’’ host Karl Stefanovic asked.
But the Treasurer insisted that the RBA was asked a hypothetical about “heaps more stimulus” that he insisted wasn’t the case in the budget.
“Obviously, I don’t see it that way. Karl, this will be a really responsible budget, because we take this inflation challenge in our economy seriously, because we know that people are under pressure,’’ the Treasurer said.
“The Governor was asked a hypothetical question about some budget speculation that there’d be a heap more stimulus in the budget. There won’t be a heap more stimulus in the budget.
“In fact, the budget will wind back spending overall. There won’t be a heap of new stimulus in the budget.”
The Treasurer insisted that most voters understood that the “big reason we’ve had these recent spikes in prices because we’ve got a major war in the Middle East.
Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock warned this week that extra spending in their budgets will make it harder reduce inflation.
“It doesn’t take much additional spending to make the job of returning inflation to target more challenging,” she said.
“The extent to which government makes up the shortfalls for households by giving them more money, it makes it harder to dampen demand … we are poorer, and there is no way out of that.”
The Treasurer also flagged that the government would have more to say on energy security today in the wake of the war in the middle east.
“The Prime Minister and Minister Bowen will be announcing later today, after national cabinet the fuel security package in the budget,” he said.
“Obviously, the budget’s got to focus on inflation. It’s got to focus on tax reform and savings and productivity, but there was also a major focus on fuel security and supply chain resilience and funding the fuel tax cut as well.
“It’s all about more fuel for motorists and for industry, and more fuel security for our economy, a big emphasis in the budget and the pm and Chris will talk a bit more about it later.”
Liberal leader Angus Taylor has pledged the Coalition will double the nation’s fuel reserves if elected as the Albanese Government prepares to announce big storage moves in the May budget.
The Liberal’s plan includes a proposal to more than double fuel reserves by increasing the Minimum Stockholding Obligation (MSO) to 60 days.
Mr Taylor will also float a plan to establish an $800 million Australian Fuel Security Facility to deliver at least 1 billion litres of new onshore storage.
“This is a plan the Prime Minister should pick up today. No excuses, no delays,” Mr Taylor said.
“If fuel stops, Australia stops. It’s that simple. Trucks don’t move, supermarkets don’t stock, businesses shut their doors.
“We are putting forward a practical plan to make sure that never happens. More fuel in reserve, more storage on the ground, and a country that can stand on its own two feet.”