Smile now, pay later: Dr Jim’s economic prescription will make Australia sicker

True to form, Chalmers was being highly selective and slippery with his words when he addressed the National Press Club, writes Daniel Wild.

“The too long; did not read version of Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ speech to the National Press Club yesterday is, “Mate, because I want to do you slowly”.

Jim Chalmers – sorry, Dr. Jim, as he insists on being called – received his PHD based on a doctoral thesis on Paul Keating as Prime Minister. Chalmers has taken Keating’s famous quip, made at the expense of hapless opposition leader John Hewson in 1992, and simply applied it to the entire economy.

We are all well and truly screwed with Dr Jim at the economic helm. In what was supposed to be Jim’s vision of the future for the Australian economy, the only concrete idea was yet another kumbaya talkfest which he has labelled a “productivity roundtable”.

Those nominated as attendees so far are the Prime Minister, RBA Governor Michele Bullock, and Chair of the Productivity Commission Danielle Wood, along with Dr Jim himself. It’s interesting that none of the four have any experience in the real world.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ address at the National Press Club was little more than a kumbaya talkfest. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Albanese and Chalmers are both life-long creatures of the Canberra political swamp; Bullock has spent her whole career at the Reserve Bank; and Danielle Wood, who at least spent some time as a consultant, has spent the bulk of her career on the taxpayer funded gravy train.

But don’t worry, the talkfest will include “a mix of government, business, union and civil society representatives, and experts”, and it “won’t be another huge summit but a small group, with a targeted agenda”. One thing is for sure; the agenda certainly will be targeted – squarely at the back-pocket of mainstream Australians through high taxes to pay for Labor’s profligate spending.

Jim Chalmers wrote a whole thesis about former treasurer Paul Keating (seen here in 1988) but didn’t learn his reforming lessons. Picture: EX NEWS SYD

True to form, Chalmers is being highly selective and slippery with his words. Chalmers asserted “we are making very good progress on the NDIS, aged care and interest costs,” and that spending on these items is now growing more sustainably than in the past. But what matters is the future. And on the government’s own figures, spending on just these three items alone is set to dramatically escalate.

Spending on interest payments on government debt over the next five years is set to rise by 75 per cent; on the NDIS by 33 per cent; and on aged care by over 22 per cent, while the economy as a whole is set to grow by just 19 per cent. In other words, the three items nominated by Chalmers as examples of the government’s economic competence, are all going to eat a bigger and bigger slice of our economy.

The reforms Dr Jim dubs “progressive and patriotic” are just a new brand name for old fashioned high spending socialism. If this is Dr Jim’s idea of sustainable, then we really are screwed.

Daniel Wild is Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs

Originally published as Smile now, pay later: Dr Jim’s economic prescription will make Australia sicker