The layouts of our cities and their transport systems were not planned with women in mind. Inflexible services and inconveniently located schools, childcare and workplaces pose daily challenges.
The budget forecast steep NDIS costs, but also allocated funds to review and support the scheme in sustainable ways that could contribute positively to the economy.
Targets of 50,000 new homes for rent at below-market rates and 1 million homes to improve affordability in general are positive steps, but the budget neglects the need to reform an ailing system.
It’s easy to spot the similarities in how this first Labor budget and its Coalition predecessors approached transport projects. Their eye-watering spending isn’t supported by proper assessments.
The latest budget shows we’re starting to cement the view that an adequate development budget is non-negotiable if Australia wants to have influence in the region.
The budget gets on with the job of implementing the health policies already promised. But there’s still more to do to get the new government’s policy settings right.
Peter Martin, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
Frightened by the prospect of an inflation rate approaching 8%, Chalmers has pumped very little into the economy, funding most of their extra spending by cutting Coalition programs.
Chalmers promised the budget would be “workmanlike”, not “flashy”, and he’s kept his word. Almost all of it had been pre-issued by the government, including measures and numbers.
Peter Martin, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
Chalmers was careful during the campaign to reject the idea of a tax-to-GDP cap. He is going to have to raise much more tax, and start a conversation about how – beginning with next week’s budget.