Health and energy bills, to be eased by federal budget 2025
Aussies struggling with power bills and the cost of medicines should be among the biggest winners from Tuesday’s federal budget.
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People struggling with power bills and the cost of medicines should be the biggest winners from Tuesday’s federal budget.
With an election ever closer, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has unveiled a host of key measures in the run up to Tuesday’s budget.
Families struggling with bills will get $150 wiped from their power bill for the second half of this year, in a limited extension of the current rebate scheme. The rebates will continue to apply to most small businesses too.
In the budget papers, money will be committed for reductions to most Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme medicines. The PBS covers more than 900 medicines (5000 different brands), and about 80 per cent of these will be cut from $31.50 to $25.
Seeing a GP should also be easier, after the government made an election commitment of $8.5bn so more GP visits are bulk billed, which has been matched by the Coalition.
The government says this move makes 18 million more GP visits bulk-billed each year.
Three million people carrying student debt will see 20 per cent wiped from their loans. A person carrying the average $27,00 debt will see a $5400 reduction. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has committed to the $16bn debt reduction by July 1.
The government’s signature shared equity housing scheme has also gotten a last minute boost ahead of the budget. While the scheme will only help 40,000 people/couples over the next four years to buy a house, the scheme received an $800m boost last week, lifting the eligibility caps on income and property prices.
Drinkers can cheers to a freezing of the ‘beer tax’. Alcohol excise, specifically for draught (kegged) beers will be frozen for two years from August. The price of all alcohol ticks up marginally twice a year. The freezing the draught beer taxes is more substantial for brewers and hospitality venues than consumers.
With the budget and impending election coming in quick succession, big state-specific projects were funded by Canberra well ahead of budget night. The Commonwealth government has set aside $7bn for Queensland’s huge Bruce Highway, and $1bn for a missing rail link between Sydney’s southwest and Western Sydney airport.
For travellers who use Melbourne Airport, the federal government has earmarked $2bn for upgrades at an existing western station.
Last year, every low and middle income worker got a tax cut. Ahead of this budget, the Coalition have claimed a record high income tax revenue is expected, as the population grows and more people creep into the next highest tax bracket.
Any professional or tradie who is paid for government contract work will have noticed the squeeze on government contracts in the past few years. This budget has shaved $720m from the external worker budgets of government departments. Since the change of government in May 2022, $4.7bn has been cut from contractor budgets in an effort to build up skills within the public service.
Last week, the regular indexation increase to Jobseeker kicked in, boosting payments by $0.22 per day, to a total of $55.79 per day for singles.
The government has been quiet in the budget lead up about prospects of a further boost to Jobseeker, however advocacy groups are pushing to raise the rate to $80 per day.
Originally published as Health and energy bills, to be eased by federal budget 2025
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