The budgeting method seems to be back in vogue 39 years after Jimmy Carter introduced it to the federal government. So what is it and can it change our free-spending ways?
A budget without bite for tackling a shortfall of homes.
FreddieBrown
David Cameron has tried to claim the clothes of social justice for the Conservatives. It’s time he took them off.
Two sides of the same coin? Convergence theory explains why the Labor and Liberal parties are often closer together on issues than they like to portray.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
Convergence theory – which holds that the main Australian political parties will, over time, converge upon near-identical policy positions on most issues – was on full display during budget week.
Looking over Palmerston and the East Arm of Darwin Harbour to the new $35B Inpex LNG plant. Many resources projects in the north are in beautiful, environmentally important places.
Andrew Campbell
This year’s federal budget outlined plans for infrastructure in northern Australia, but it will need to do more than build roads and rail to sustainably develop the north.
Small Business Minister Bruce Billson said a single online registration site for small business would be established.
AAP/Alan Porritt
Registration of small businesses will be streamlined as part of the government’s package for the sector, which will be a centrepiece of Tuesday’s budget.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Treasurer Joe Hockey pose for photos as they discuss their second budget.
AAP/Lukas Coch
Joe Hockey sounded almost pleading, in his appeal after the Reserve Bank announced an interest rate cut of 0.25 of a percentage point, taking the cash rate to 2%, a new record low.
Changes in environment health are invisible in the national accounts.
AAP Image/Richard Wainwrigh
“At the moment, we are spending over $100 million a day more than we’re collecting in revenue. Now that’s unsustainable, particularly given we’re spending nearly $40 million a day on the interest on the…
Fast-spinning black holes don’t just exist in space – Queensland’s Liberal National and Labor parties are busy attacking each other’s strategies to cut debt, yet both have been guilty of having black holes in their plans.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
Author’s update, January 29: In the week since this article was published (on January 23), Labor has moved to address the funding “black hole” in its plans to reduce Queensland’s debt, mainly by adopting…
Australian Treasurer Joe Hockey is facing the prospect of a budget blowout, thanks largely to a hostile Senate.
Lukas Coch/AAP
Charis Palmer, The Conversation et Emil Jeyaratnam, The Conversation
The Conversation has undertaken a stocktake of the major budget savings measures opposed, at risk, or yet to be legislated. According to our analysis, which has been verified by Grattan Institute chief…
Third time lucky: after a deal between Clive Palmer (right) and his Senate PUPs with the government, the carbon tax has finally been repealed.
Alan Porritt/AAP
UPDATED THURSDAY 17 JULY, 11:20am: Australia’s “carbon tax” has been axed – so what does it mean for you and for Australia? We asked Conversation readers to tell us on Facebook and Twitter what questions…
Many long-promised renewable and low-emission energy programs have been scrapped or cut back in the Coalition’s first budget.
Lukas Coch/AAP
There are billions of dollars of broken promises in the Abbott government’s first budget for low-emission and renewable energy programs – and wiggle room to break even more in the next few years. Among…
A report criticising government oversight of a major Gladstone harbour dredging project has warned against cutting resources for environmental monitoring and compliance.
Flickr/GreensMPs
A long-awaited report on environmental failures at the biggest port along the Great Barrier Reef coastline and today’s federal budget may not seem connected – but if you read the report, it’s clear just…
More austerity will mean more unhappy referendum voters in months to come.
NUS Scotland
Chancellor George Osborne has delivered his last budget before the September referendum in Scotland. He did so with one eye on the UK election in May 2015. But the other was firmly focused on the Scottish…
Osborne in the spotlight - what’s in the red box?
Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire
The days leading up the budget are hectic as many in the Treasury are busy devising financial gimmicks to please the electorate. This forthcoming budget is particularly important as next year’s budget…
Now you see it … now you don’t.
Owen Humphreys/PA Wire
George Osborne has warned that a further £25bn of spending cuts will be needed after the next election – with about half of those cuts to be made from the social security budget, largely from cuts in benefits…
March 2015 could see a Washington-style impasse in the UK parliament over the government’s final budget proposals. The advent of coalition government, fixed terms in office, and a general resurgence of…
Abbott is waving goodbye to his pledge to deliver a surplus in his first term.
AAP
In launching the Liberal Party’s campaign in Brisbane on Sunday, Tony Abbott appeared to renege on his previous announcement to bring the budget back to surplus in the first term of the Coalition government…
Chris Bowen’s mini budget doesn’t tackle the structural problems facing the Australian budget.
AAP/Lukas Coch
Chris Bowen, the new Labor Treasurer, has announced the government’s plans for savings and new sources of revenue to meet a budget shortfall with the aim of bring about the elusive budget surplus in 2016/17…
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne