COVID-19 rescue package is a $173bn slug for taxpayers

The key planks of Scott Morrison’s COVID-19 rescue package will cost taxpayers more than $173bn, according to the July economic statement.

The key planks of Scott Morrison’s COVID-19 rescue package — including the JobKeeper and JobSeeker stimulus schemes — will cost taxpayers more than $173bn, according to the July economic statement.

The government’s economic package includes a range of programs aimed at keeping Australians in work and skilling them for the future, as well as helping businesses stay afloat and encouraging them to invest.

COVID-19 wage subsidies are the biggest weight on the budget bottom line and are expected to cost $85.7bn over the next two years.

The JobKeeper payments of $1500 a fortnight for workers tied to registered businesses — due to come down to $1200 a fortnight from September and then $1000 in December — has been hailed by the government as the best way to get people back into their old jobs once the economy reopens.

JobKeeper may be the most expensive program in the COVID-19 support package but the wage subsidy scheme is still more than $44bn cheaper than originally projected.

Welfare payments to individuals and families, including the boosted JobSeeker dole, will cost the budget more than $26bn over the next four years.

JobSeeker, formally known as Newstart, has been boosted by a $550 coronavirus supplement so that recipients now get a total of $1100 a fortnight. That supplement will be cut to $250 in September, leaving them with an income of $800 a fortnight.

Two sets of one-off $750 payments have also gone out to more than seven million Australians on government support.

Individual welfare measures will cost $16.75bn and family support will cost $9.4bn.

The economic statement expects the cost of welfare boosts to be offset slightly by $834m in tax revenue received from welfare ­recipients.

Cashflow support for businesses and employers will cost $31.9bn over two years and is the second-biggest component of the COVID support package.

Eligible businesses are able to apply for federal payments of ­between $10,000 and $20,000 until September. So far, $16bn in cashflow support has been delivered to 750,000 companies.

The government’s health measures during the pandemic will cost $9.42bn, with $3.67bn of that going directly into boosting Australia’s hospitals.

Measures to support apprentices and trainees during the recovery will cost $2.8bn while the extension to the instant asset write-off will cost $1bn.

The extra support for the aviation sector is costing $1.9bn while the HomeBuilder grant will cost $680m.

The Prime Minister has also unveiled a $400m package to ­attract more film productions into ­Australia.