Federal Budget 2022: Politicians, industry reactions revealed
Fallout from the 2022 Budget has forced the PM to defend the New Home Guarantee, while the Opposition attacked the "sincerity" of cost of living relief. See the reactions from industry figures, advocates and politicians.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has handed down his fourth federal budget, dubbed a battlers' budget with the 2022 papers revealing measures to reduce cost of living as well as significant training and defence spending.
Motorists and low to middle-income taxpayers are among the budget's big winners, with the fuel excise slashed in half and a $420 one-off tax offset announced for this financial year.
Pensioners and welfare recipients will also benefit from a $250 cash bonus, and cheaper prescriptions.
The government has also expanded the Home Guarantee Scheme from 20,000 to 50,000 places to allow eligible first home buyers to get into a property with a deposit as small as 2 per cent.
In response to increasing national security threats from hostile foreign actors, the Morrison government has also committed to a nearly $10 billion spend to increase our offensive and defensive cyber capabilities.
Now the wash-up from the budget is well and truly underway with politicians, advocates and industry leaders from all sides and sectors responding to the wins and losses.
Updates
New Home Guarantee scheme expansion labelled 'incredibly risky'
The 2022-23 budget has seen the New Home Guarantee expanded to 50,000 places, allowing first home buyers to enter the property market with a deposit as low as two per cent.
However, critics say the scheme is "incredibly risky".
RateCity director of research Sally Tindall told the ABC while the scheme has its merits in a rising market, there are concerns prospective homeowners will be less informed and not "do the math" themselves.
"The government is proactively pushing Australians to pay top dollar for a property with a wafer thin deposit, (and) no safety net."
PM's big decision on beer slammed as 'extremely disappointing'
The closest thing to it was a targeted exemption from excise licensing requirements for pouring growlers – large takeaway jugs for draught beer.
“We’re extremely disappointed that the federal government has not cut draught beer tax in the budget,” Brewers Association of Australia chief executive John Preston said.
Critics of the proposal, including the hard-alcohol lobby group Spirits and Cocktails, savaged the suggestion as a “sexist” play for male votes because men tended to drink more beer than women.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has been grilled over a “missing” $3bn not revealed in the federal budget, but he says the opposition simply can’t read the papers properly.
Mr Frydenberg spent Wednesday morning spruiking the budget but was met with a question by ABC Radio National host Patricia Karvelas he had trouble answering.
“Budget papers include almost $3bn in cuts to payments from 2024, but there are no details regarding what you’ll be cutting. What’s the big secret?” Karvelas asked.
The Treasurer spent Wednesday morning spruiking the budget on morning television and radio. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage
Mr Frydenberg responded: “Well, we’re actually seeing more investment in the essential services, in schools and in hospitals”.
Karvelas cut him off, asking once again about the $3bn.
“I don’t know what you’re actually referring to specifically,” he responded.
Against all the odds Sydney mother Alison Day will get to celebrate her daughter’s 12th birthday — and thanks to her dying wish many more Australian women battling aggressive breast cancer will make it to their own milestones.
Since being told she would not survive her triple negative breast cancer diagnosis, Ms Day has lobbied for expedited access to a promising drug Trodelvy, which has not only extended her own life but will now be subsidised by the federal government for others.
Breast cancer sufferer Alison Day and her daughter Skye. Picture: Tim Hunter
While delivering the 2022-23 Budget Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced the listing of Trodelvy on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, which will save patients with the rare triple negative breast cancer up to $80,000 per treatment.
Speaking after she watched Mr Frydenberg’s speech, Ms Day said the funding announcement was an “answer to all (her) prayers”.
Prime Minister clashes with Today host over rental affordability
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg unveiled his fourth budget on Tuesday evening with a promise to double the government’s first homebuyer scheme to 50,000 places.
The program lowers the minimum deposit required down from 20 per cent to five per cent, with the government securing the difference.
But as Today Show host Ally Langdon pointed out on Wednesday morning, while it was being touted as a cost-of-living budget, it included nothing to help many Australians struggling with rising rental prices.
However, the Prime Minister suggested the way to solve rental affordability was by boosting rates of home ownership.
“(The) best way to support people who are renting a house is to help them buy a house. And over the last three years, we've got over 300,000 Australians directly in their own home, and particularly single mums,” he told Nine.
The 2022-23 budget’s measures for older Australians include a $250 cash payment for concession card holders, a move welcomed by pensioners’ groups
In addition, $468 million will be spent over five years implementing recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.
National Seniors Australia chief advocate Ian Henschke told radio station 2GB the announcements for aged care are a great start, but without a pay increase the aged care sector will continue to struggle to attract young people.
“If you don’t have the wages, then you don’t have the workers.”
He recommended self-funded retirees also check their eligibility for a concession card to avoid missing out on the one-off bonus.
Mr Henschke has long advocated for pensioners to be allowed to return to the workforce and was disappointed the measure was not included in the budget, but he remains hopeful of a pre-election announcement.
Tradies, bakers and hairdressers are just some of the almost 60 occupations entitled to the government’s new apprenticeship support payments from July.
Apprentices in priority occupations will get $1250 every six months for two years to support their cost-of-living and employers who hire them will score up to $15,000 in wage subsidies under a $2.8bn plan from the federal budget to boost trade completion rates over five years.
The wage subsidy for bosses will cover 10 per cent of the wage in the first and second of the apprenticeship and 5 per cent of the wage in the third year.
Any profession on the Australian Apprentices Priority List is eligible for the payments and there 58 occupations on the 2022 list including enrolled nurses, panel beaters, tree loppers, carpenters and aged and disability workers.
The list will be updated each year based on industry analysis on which professions have the most present and future demand.
In 2024, the strategy will downgrade to $3000 direct payments to apprentices and $4000 hiring incentives for employers – with the higher funding in the first two years aimed at countering the lingering financial burden of the Covid pandemic.
Here is the full list to check if you are eligible:
Aged or Disabled Carer Agriculture Technician Air-conditioning Arborist Automotive Electrician Baker Bricklayer Butcher or Smallgoods Maker Cabinet-maker Cabler Carpenter and Joiner Chef Child Care Civil Engineering Draftsman and Technician Cook Dental Assistant Diesel Motor Mechanic Diversional Therapist Drainer Electrical Engineering Draftsman and technician Electrician Enrolled Nurse Farrier Fibrous Plasterer Fitter and Turner Floor Finisher Gasfitter Glazier Greenkeeper Hairdresser Joiner Landscape Gardener Locksmith Meat inspector Metal fabricator Painting trades worker Panel beater Pastry cook Personal Care Assistant Plumber Pressure Welder Roof Plumber Roof Tiler Shearer Sheet metal trades worker Shipwright Sign-writer Small Engine Mechanic Solid Plaster Stonemason Technical Cable Jointer Telecommunications Cable Jointer Upholsterer Vehicle Painter Wall and Floor Tiler Welder Wood Machinist
Anthony Albanese attacks 'fake' plan for cost of living
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese has lashed out at the federal government’s “fake" plan to alleviate financial pressure at the petrol pump and help Australians deal with rising living costs.
The Labor leader took aim at the Morrison government’s budget announcements, criticising one-off payments support measures and tax reliefs as a part of a “plan for an election”.
“This has all the sincerity of a fake tan. This is a plan for an election, not a plan for Australia’s future and I think people will see it for what it is,” Albanese told ABC News Breakfast.
“These one-off measures are from a government that’s desperate, (and that) has been dismissing these issues up to a couple of days before they call an election.”
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese says the 2022 Budget doesn't address cost of living pain in the long term. Picture: Martin Ollman/Getty Images
Albanese told News Breakfast hosts that he won’t be making the same commitments to extend the fuel excise cut and $250 one-off payments if Labor wins the upcoming federal election.
He said a Labor government would announce a budget that would bring about “structural changes, with real reform”.
“What we have is a plan for cheaper childcare, a plan for addressing house affordability through our Housing Australia Future Fund, a plan for growth in the economy through our National Reconstruction Fund,” Albanese said.
“(There will be a) $275 reduction in people’s energy bills by the end of 2025 as a result of our policies that we have been putting forward. They’re permanent improvements in people’s living standards.”
Headlining the government’s battle plan is a cut to the fuel excise tax.
A six month halving of the fuel excise tax – by a very precise 22.1 cents per litre – takes dead aim at voters’ most obvious cost of living frustration, particularly for families and business owners in car-dependent suburbs.
Fuel excise will be cut in half. For the next 6 months, Australians will save 22 cents a litre every time they fill up their car.
A family with 2 cars who fill up once a week could save around $30 a week or around $700 over the next 6 months. pic.twitter.com/EVZUo8KArP
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has attempted to show off a softer side to his political personality by debuting a new ad where he promises to get Australia “back on track”.
