Editorial: Balancing act has to work both ways

It is incumbent on all levels of government to carefully evaluate spending from here on in to ensure it is worth the risk of driving up inflation, writes the editor.

It is incumbent on all levels of government to carefully evaluate spending from here on in to ensure it is worth the risk of driving up inflation.

It will be tempting for the Palaszczuk government in particular to throw money around in the lead-up to next year’s election – but any so-called cost-of-living relief must be targeted, and new infrastructure projects must deliver bang for buck.

Make no mistake, people are hurting in this state.

According to Suicide Prevention Australia, 54 per cent of “middle-age, middle-wage” workers are reporting elevated stress due to cost-of-living pressures and personal debt. That’s compared to 42 per cent this time last year.

Almost half of Queensland households are in mortgage stress, meaning they are spending more than 30 per cent of their pre-tax income on home loan repayments.

Households with a $600,000 mortgage have had to find an extra $1600 a month since last May.

And at the moment, there’s no relief in sight as the Reserve Bank is likely to announce rates will either stay the same or go higher today as it attempts to rein in inflation.

ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliott has issued the sobering warning that Australians should prepare for higher-for-longer interest rates.

He says high immigration levels as well as baked-in government spending on infrastructure, housing and the climate transition are to blame for sticky inflation.

Mr Elliot told The Australian: “You have to stand back and forget next year – just think about over the next five years. Everything Western governments, including Australia, want to do is fundamentally inflationary.

“As a community, we will need to make a choice over whether we push ahead with the massive infrastructure building ambition or lower interest rates.”

Community expectation would be that all spending is carefully evaluated to ensure if it is potentially inflationary, it’s going to be worth it in the long term.

Of course, there’s also individual responsibility to rein in spending where possible to battle homegrown inflation. But it’s not as simple as RBA governor Michele Bullock’s suggestion that Australians going for haircuts and dentist visits are to blame.

Immigration is a huge factor, and so too is government spending.

The federal government has already re-evaluated its pipeline of projects and cut spending as a way to deal with inflation.

While some of the cuts remain controversial, it’s clear serious – and in many cases unpopular – decisions have had to be made.

In Queensland, significant investment will be needed ahead of the 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games. Making sure the projects provide a lasting legacy must be a priority.

The Palaszczuk government has faced criticism for doubling its first homebuyers grant to $30,000, with mixed opinion on whether it could drive up housing prices.

All such policies must be heavily scrutinised and it will be a tough balancing act going forward.

But Australian households are facing their own balancing act just to make ends meet, so it is only fair our leaders are feeling the same pressure to ensure the situation does not get any worse.

ONE MOVE TO ENSURE ALL IS FINE

It defies belief that rangers have dished out just 27 fines to people for dangerously interacting with wild dingoes on K’gari (Fraser Island) in the past five years, despite a string of incidents.

There have been more than 30 high-risk interactions between humans and dingoes this year.

That included a 23-year-old woman being chased into the ocean, an attack on a six-year-old girl, and a 10-year-old boy being dragged under water.

Three animals on the island have been euthanised.

Environment Minister Leanne Linard says fines are a last resort, with rangers taking an education-first approach.

That is all well and good, but the true test will be when tourists flock to the island this summer.

K’gari’s dingoes are part of the reason visitors are drawn to the island. But they have become emboldened by some frankly stupid behaviour from some tourists visiting the area.

And one way to stop that is to make the threat of fines real.

The “crackdown” promised by the state government has not really eventuated in this instance.

K’gari is one of the jewels in Queensland’s tourism crown, and must be protected.

That means ensuring tourists can have a safe time on the island, and the wildlife can live peacefully.

The government should be applauded for funding more rangers to educate tourists on the island, but must use every weapon it has to provide safety for all.

Responsibility for election comment is taken by Chris Jones, corner of Mayne Rd & Campbell St, Bowen Hills, Qld 4006. Printed and published by NEWSQUEENSLAND (ACN 009 661 778). Contact details here

Originally published as Editorial: Balancing act has to work both ways