This toe-in-the-water exercise points to tougher tax increases
For Chalmers, Tuesday was a test of his capacity to exercise restraint because this budget, and by extension, the government’s political fortunes, will live and die on what it does to inflation.
When Jim Chalmers turned up for work on Tuesday, he heralded the return to a surplus of $4.2 billion for this financial year as “the biggest budget turnaround on record”.
He wasn’t talking about a one-year recovery, but apparently a $126 billion consolidation over this and the next three years.
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Phillip Coorey is the political editor based in Canberra. He is a two-time winner of the Paul Lyneham award for press gallery excellence. Connect with Phillip on Facebook and Twitter. Email Phillip at pcoorey@afr.com
