The federal government’s tax cuts that come into force on July 1 are likely to prolong interest rate pain for Australian households, as uncertainty over energy policy, the economy and geopolitics keep business investment and projects on hold, several company directors say.

“We are about to get a pretty significant stimulus with tax cuts, so we need to see how this all plays through. It’s probably too early to believe you can start cutting interest rates,” says Paul O’Sullivan, chairman of ANZ Bank and telco Optus.