Government must come up with tax cuts

Given that wages growth jumped off a cliff some time ago, it is fair to say that workers are getting more frustrated with little relief in sight. All that means is that the government has to take the lead role and come up with tax cuts. Josh Frydenberg has heard the message and is about to announce that the tax cuts are nigh. This brings into focus the phobia some pundits have raised about delivering a surplus. The mob could not care less about whether or not a surplus is delivered. Provided they are satisfied that spending is not going to crazy levels, a bit of debt does not frighten them and it would seem it does not frighten governments too much these days either.

We live in a time of the lowest interest rates in decades so would this not be the time to borrow big time and build the infrastructure projects which tomorrow demands. In New South Wales, Gladys Berejiklian has successfully styled herself as the Premier most devoted to building the road and rail links we will need for the future to maintain NSW as the state making the greatest contribution to national GDP. It would take real courage to announce a big borrowing but a good politician is a good salesman and the electorate would welcome someone with vision, a commodity in very short supply in modern Australia.

The one query I have on some transport planning is that every time we build a whiz bang new road the only thing it achieves is to get us to the traffic jam a bit faster given the limited space allowed for in most big cities. In Los Angeles the wide loops and links between these fabulous looking freeways have achieved zero time saving. In London they make you pay dearly for driving in the central parts of the city. In cities such as Bangkok, the traffic is simply impossible. Rail and light rail have to be the way of the future and that means that governments will have to compulsorily appropriate private houses to find the routes for the more efficient forms of transport. This is never easy and can make governments vulnerable in affected marginal seats. Anyone who has seen that brilliant Australian movie The Castle has some idea of how much the family home means to their fellow Australians.