National Treasury is incapable of coming up with the sweeping governmental, social and economic changes required to dig South Africa out of its economic hole.
Does the budget tabled by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni (right) speak to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s (left) vision of the new economy?
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A large part of the debt the Indonesian government is taking on to fight the COVID-19 pandemic is as a 50-year loan in US dollars. That could create a big problem in coming decades.
“This review…is really just a bone to Pauline Hanson. The government needs her vote in the senate,” says Michelle Grattan on the controversial appointment of Hanson as deputy chair of the committee.
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Michelle Grattan discusses the government’s new family law inquiry, and Australia being banned from the speaking list at the upcoming UN climate change summit.
Arthur Caldwell almost defeated Robert Menzies in the poll in 1961, and won the debate about policy.
National Archives, National Library of Australia, Wikimedia
South Africa’s finance minister Malusi Gigaba failed to impress when presenting the eagerly awaited 2017 medium term budget.
Because the threshold for the Medicare levy exemption is based on family income, the reform will reinforce the move towards higher effective tax rates on low income second earners in a family.
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With its recent budget changes, the government is proposing a rise in marginal tax rates across a wide band of middle incomes and a marginal tax rate cut for the top.
Modern monetary theorists aren’t concerned with budget repair.
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The government has made a concerted bid to reinforce Australia’s AAA credit credentials by ensuring the budget is still projected to return to surplus in 2020-21.
Deloitte says the shorter term implications of Donald Trump’s election are likely to be less than the speculation.
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The federal deficit will be worse in 2017-18 than predicted in the May budget, despite some easing in the delays imposed by the Senate, Deloitte Access Economics’ budget monitor predicts.
Tony Abbott has set out what amounted to a series of benchmarks for the Turnbull government.
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The government and Labor have offered up competing packages of budget savings. The question of whether they can meet halfway will be a test for both sides.
In many ways Bill Shorten is in a box seat as parliament begins, with Malcolm Turnbull beset by difficult issues and politics.
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Treasurer Scott Morrison has given notice of a fresh assault on the crucial challenge of budget repair. Let’s hope he and Malcolm Turnbull have learned from the unfortunate self-destructing experience…
Bill Shorten will say in a speech that his package would save more than $80 billion over a decade.
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