This is an election-year budget from a government with a thin majority – and one that has been widely criticised for doing too little to help the Reserve Bank in the battle to reduce inflation and interest rates.

So, what the voters got was the prospect of a $9 billion pre-election budget surplus to be followed by a string of deficits, a temporary reduction in inflation and perhaps a temporary reduction in interest rates, tax cuts and relief for energy bills, rent, student debt, all timed to fit with the election and restricted to avoid adding to inflation and interest rates.