Budget 2022

Extra tax cut for 10 million low and middle income workers worth up to $420 – while fuel excise will be slashed for next six months.

Under the cost of living package, the low and middle income tax offset will be increased by $420, meaning all workers earning up to $126,000 a year will receive an extra boost when they lodge their tax return for this year. “Events abroad are pushing up the cost of living at home,” he said in his budget speech. Budget commitments for the regions outlined in the budget total more than $21bn over the medium term. “It doesn’t make up for the fact that people’s real wages are falling. “They don’t have a plan that goes beyond the May election. As a result of the booming jobs market, the budget says wage growth is on track to accelerate at its fastest pace in almost a decade, with the wage price index to jump from 2.75% this year to 3.25% next year. “And the government is now pretending to care about those costly pressures because Scott Morrison has to call an election in the next fortnight.” These measures will cost a combined $5.6bn. At the same time, economic growth forecasts have been upgraded on the back of momentum in the jobs market and buoyant consumer spending, with GDP now forecast to grow by 4.25% in 2021-22, 3.5% in 2022-23 and 2.5% in 2023-24. It is the most short-sighted budget in memory – it has a shelf life of about six or seven weeks.” In addition, the government will also halve the fuel excise for six months – which is now set at 44 cents a litre – saving about $15 on the average price of a tank of petrol, at a cost to the budget of about $3bn. Frydenberg said the regions were a “priority” for the government, acknowledging that there was “a lot in this budget for the regions”.

The $1 billion Technology Investment Boost applies to a maximum of $100,000 in spending annually with a 120% deduction on business expenses and depreciating ...

Under the scheme, the effective income tax rate of 17 % for eligible patents, rather than the 25-30% tax rates for small to large businesses. The budget papers forward estimates, which run over four years, reveal a 35% decrease in funding. The measures include: It applies to patents issued by IP Australia, and is being expanded to include patents issued in the US and Europe The $1 billion Technology Investment Boost applies to a maximum of $100,000 in spending annually with a 120% deduction on business expenses and depreciating assets for digital transformation. But in terms of the tech sector’s Budget wish list, the focus for digital transformation in Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s fourth budget is squarely on small business with increased tax concessions for small businesses that invest in digital skills training and technology.

It's easy to get bogged down in the numbers and politics of it all – but how does the budget directly affect you?

A further $365 million was set aside for the Australian Apprenticeships Incentive Scheme, which will supplement an extra 35,000 apprenticeship wages. The same deduction will apply to small businesses that embrace digital technology. But the budget delivered on some pre-made promises in the form of tax offsets and a cut to the fuel excise. Another $23 million will be set aside for stillbirth and miscarriage support services and autopsies. Young job seekers or concession cardholders could also be eligible for the one-off $250 cash payment, and benefit from the fuel excise reduction and tax offset for low-middle income tax offset. The four-year project would dedicate $16.4 million to establish two clinics in each state and territory to make treatment more accessible. It will target vulnerable people who have had a history of drugs, abuse or who’ve come from broken homes. The tax offset will mean those who earn less than $126,000 a year can access a one-off $420 payment at tax time on top of up to $1080 that is normally available to them. The scheme means that first-home buyers won’t need to spend tens of thousands of dollars on lenders mortgage insurance, which is usually required if a person’s deposit is less than 20 per cent. Ten thousand of those places will be set aside for people wanting to build or buy brand-new homes. This will mean they won’t get taxed for leaving more money in their super fund. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s 2022-23 budget has the government spending big on defence and state-based infrastructure.

Last night's Federal Budget was a cynical cash splash designed to buy votes at an election or a carefully m...

"The fuel excise tax is a fixed amount per litre regardless of market price. "It is questionable though whether these cuts will reduce petrol prices. "The Budget has few immediate implications for monetary policy. An economy with an inflation rate that is likely to be above 4 per cent and an unemployment rate likely to be under 4 per cent does not need a cash rate of 0.1 per cent," he forecasts. "But there is plenty of inflation in the pipeline. "They believe that the reduction in the fuel price levy will take some of the heat from inflation.

Pledge of $10bn will see electronic spy agency double and ramp up ability to launch offensive cyber operations.

Earlier this month the government announced plans to recruit an extra 18,500 defence personnel by 2040 at a total cost of $38bn. The government said it would bolster Australia’s commitment to its Five-Eyes and Aukus partners “while supporting a secure Indo-Pacific region”. The Coalition has previously faced accusations of talking tough on cybersecurity but failing to deliver. While ASD on the whole will double in size, it is expected to triple its offensive cyber capabilities. But the funding is spread over 10 years and only $4.2bn will be spent in the first four-year budget cycle. After the establishment last week of a space command within the Royal Australian Air Force, the government is also pledging more funding to develop Australia’s space industry, to be led by the Australian Space Agency.

Of course, using GDP to measure defence spending is a crude tool; 2021-22's defence budget started off at 2.09% but is now a hair below 2.0% at 1.98% because ...

The 2020 Defence Strategic Update gave us a few glimmers of different thinking, with hints that Defence would explore asymmetric approaches to deterring threats. It’s not spelled out in the PBS, but ASPI understands that the $38 billion for the first 12,500 is already built into Defence’s current funding model. Of course, concerns over Defence’s ability to spend its acquisition budget probably played a role, since the department has come up around a billion short of its spending target in each of the past two years. And considering the ADF is already 1,600 people short of where it’s meant to be right now, even that might be optimistic. Two weeks ago, the government announced an increase of 12,500 military personnel in the coming decade and a further 6,000 the decade after that. But even its supporters can’t be happy with the fact that by the end of 2022-23 we will have spent over $2.3 billion on the Boxer combat reconnaissance vehicle with only 25 vehicles delivered (and those from overseas) five years after the project was approved. Indeed, we should note that as in the previous five years, the government has once again delivered the funding it committed to back in the 2016 Defence White Paper. And there’s the rub. One might say that the M-113 has been obsolete for three decades already, so where’s the harm in waiting yet another one for its replacement? Is it time to reconsider a funding model developed nearly seven years ago, particularly when that funding line continues throughout the forward estimates, at which point it will be based on assumptions over ten years old? It’s pouring an additional $4.2 billion over the forward estimates and $9.9 billion over the coming decade into the Australian Signals Directorate to deliver greater offensive and defensive cyber capabilities. Despite high inflation, it’s still a real increase of 3.8%. For those interested in spending as a percentage of GDP, it’s 2.11% based on the government’s GDP predictions. The 2022-23 defence budget is a conflicted program.

Sadly, genuine structural tax reform remains missing in action. Banner with the text Individuals and families. No income tax cuts. There are no changes to the ...

An additional $458.1 million will be provided over 5 years from 2021-22 to support older Australians in the aged care sector with managing the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. In last October’s federal budget, the Government committed to a significant infrastructure spend of $110 billion over 10 years with a focus on near-term investments in major road and rail projects, road safety and community infrastructure. A further $501.7 million has been committed to this program bringing the total Government commitment to $3 billion. Funding in this year’s Budget in relation to the digital economy strategy includes: There will be a small lag where bonus deductions for expenditure incurred by 30 June 2022 will be claimed in tax returns in the following income year. It is anticipated the systems will be in place by 31 December 2023. There is no mention of annual caps on training courses that can be deducted at the bonus rate, but certain rules apply such as the boost will not apply for in-house or on-the-job training. For families, this means a reduction of 22c per litre of fuel, working out at approximately $300 over the six-month period. The offset starts to phase out thereafter until it reduces to nil at a taxable income of $126,000. Unemployment is forecast to remain around the 4% mark over the forecast period, with wages increasing slightly over that period. This will be automatically paid next month (April 2022) to eligible pensioners, welfare recipients, veterans and eligible concession card holders. Small businesses are the main beneficiaries of incremental tax incentives and compliance or administration measures.

With an election looming, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg uses his address at the National Press Club to convince Australians his government's budget is the way ...

"We were finalising content in the details of that, but we provisioned for it in the responsible way you do. - 1.From 12:01am today, Australia's fuel excise (aka the money you're giving to the government at the petrol pump) has been halved from 44.2 cents per litre to 22.1 cents. Here's a super quick rundown on what you should know. "Last night's budget demonstrates that our economy now has real momentum. "The price of oil is up by 50 per cent since the start of the year. "The verdict is now in. So there are some important developments occurring across the economy, where we are being required to spend more on aged care, NDIS and defence. By Maani Truu By Maani Truu By Maani Truu By Maani Truu By Maani Truu

On the climate crisis and the natural environment, the story of the 2022-23 budget is one of what isn't there as much as what is.

It is possible it could help address a major flaw with the current system – its failure to factor in the cumulative impact of different projects that destroy habitat and affect threatened species and ecosystems. It focuses on hydrogen and includes projects that will add to the greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere. It included $1bn for the reef spread over nine years, mostly to help clean up agricultural run-off affecting water quality, and $804m for Antarctic research and strategic capability over a decade. He did mention another commitment that was consistent with the budget’s focus on regional Australia: $148.6m for community solar and wind microgrids in areas too remote to have access to the power grid. The budget papers say this will contribute to a $2bn improvement in the budget bottom line over the next four years. Most, but not all, of that funding has been promised to top up funding for the clean energy agencies, which were created a decade ago under a deal between Labor, the Greens and independents.

Industry researchers say 2022 Budget ends COVID support far too early, as an especially dire picture emerges for film and television and for regional arts.

But Ben Eltham says the fall in regional arts funding is “bizarre”: “I live in a regional community now, and that stuff’s important. While there is a small amount of money yet to come in the RISE fund, the visual arts sector had been largely ineligible for that program until late last year when eligibility criteria were changed. Dr Helen Rusack, a Senior Lecturer in Arts Management at Edith Cowan University, said Australia ranks 27th out of the 33 OECD countries in cultural expenditure. Overall film and television funding drops from $195 million to $150 million and remains at about that level in the forward estimates. Forward projections for arts and cultural development are just $2.36 to $2.4 million a year between 2023-24 and 2025-26. I struggled to find [news coverage] beyond Twitter. … There’s a delayed effect for people understanding how much has been cut from the Budget.” “Some people in the sector don’t like RISE because they feel too much has gone to commercial stuff, but I think it’s been a reasonable stimulus,” he says. “You can clearly see that they think COVID’s over, and no more support is there,” she says. “One of the 22 recommendations of the report was that the Government develop a national cultural plan to assess the medium and long-term needs of the sector,” says Benton. “Now it’s finishing, but the sector is still in trouble. Many freelance and casual artists and cultural workers meanwhile were shut out of the JobKeeper program. Audiences are not back to 2019 levels: not even close.

How best to imagine our future after floods, pandemic, war and more? It's the challenge confronting electoral candidates across Australia – a challenge which ...

With so many seats truly in contention, candidates will be ready to engage with the issues that matter most. During the pandemic, the Australia Council repurposed its own funds to provide urgent crisis relief funding, which meant cutting or ending a range of valuable programs. Australia’s arts and cultural sector was always going to astound audiences across the nation when ambitious public investment was there to support accessibility, touring and risk-taking. The impact of funds at that scale is significant; this program was not designed as a temporary support. Within the first months of the pandemic’s impact, industry leaders surveyed the scene and assessed what would be needed to get through the crisis. It took a pandemic for the government to invest at levels the industry’s been calling for across the past decade. The immediate impact of the pandemic on the arts was so great a matter of national significance that the Treasurer mentioned it in his Budget speech last year. The Australian Government’s arts and cultural heritage expenditure includes the Office for the Arts, the Australia Council, and the National Cultural Institutions such as the National Gallery of Australia and the National Museum of Australia. - $3.5m this financial year and $5.8m next financial year for the National Museum of Australia – so that’s $5.8m in new money. In Budget Paper No. 1, we learn that ‘Expenses under the arts and cultural heritage sub-function are estimated to decrease by 10.6 per cent in real terms from 2021-22 to 2022-23 and decrease by 13.1 per cent in real terms from 2022-23 to 2025-26.’ - $9m to Screen Australia in the current financial year for local cinemas – so nothing at all in new money for Screen Australia in the period covered by Budget 2022-23. Instead, the arts narrative in last night’s Federal Budget 2022-23 is of decreases – a narrative we need to work hard to piece together among the various Budget Papers, Ministerial and Portfolio Budget Statements.