‘Neglect’ and ‘issues of own creation’: Albanese slams budget leaks

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May 11 2021
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‘Budget leaks’ and spending boosts have failed to impress Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, who has accused the government of trying to paper over its own ‘neglect’, and this is likely before he has seen the budget in its entirety.

Over the last fortnight, various government departments, including Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, have announced spending boosts for sectors including aged care, childcare, infrastructure and job creation projects.

However, during a press stop, Mr Albanese condemned these budget leaks, telling reporters the promises of increased spending are just the Liberal Party trying to sell fixes to a “mess” that they themselves have created.

“This is a government that waits until there’s a crisis before it responds,” Mr Albanese said.

“On aged care in 2019, they received a report titled Neglect. But they have waited until this week for any response.

“On childcare, when we announced our cheaper childcare policy in last year’s budget reply, they said there were no issues, there was no problem with rising childcare costs, there was no issues with women’s workforce participation. And now they acknowledge in their release that, indeed, there is a major problem,” he explained.

The Opposition Leader went a step further and accused the Morrison government of strategically leaking parts of the budget day after day, creating a “show bag budget.”

“A budget that looks pretty flashy, but when you take it home, only lasts a few days or a few weeks. The fact is there’s no lasting legacy from this government except for a trillion dollars of debt,” Mr Albanese said.

“No substantial economic reform, no plan to deal with stagnant wages, no plan to deal with living standards under real pressure and the costs that families have.

The leader of the opposition also questioned what the government has achieved in its eight years in office and what Australia gained from its now trillion-dollar debt.

“No substantial economic reform, no plan to deal with stagnant wages, no plan to deal with living standards under real pressure and the costs that families have,” Mr Albanese said.

“No issue of the 2 million people who are underemployed and seeking more work. Nothing to do with increased casualisation of our workforce.”

Shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers also condemned the budget, accusing the Liberal Party of creating a budget “wholly and solely to get the Morrison government through an election.”

“If they genuinely cared about aged care or training or actually getting infrastructure money out the door, they would have done something before now.

“This government is eight years old, by the time of the next election, they’ll be asking for 12 years. They seem to want a round of applause for talking about some of these issues which are messes of their own making,” Mr Chalmers stated.

“This looks like and smells like and sounds like a budget designed to get a government through an election and not to get people into good, secure, well-paid jobs. And it’s good secure and well-paid jobs that Australians need.”

Follow our live budget analysis tonight.

About the author

Cameron is a journalist for Momentum Media's nestegg and Smart Property Investment. He enjoys giving Aussies practical financial tips and tricks to help grow their wealth and achieve financial independence. As a self-confessed finance nerd, Cameron enjoys chatting with industry experts and commentators to leverage their insights to grow your portfolio.

About the author

Cameron is a journalist for Momentum Media's nestegg and Smart Property Investment. He enjoys giving Aussies practical financial tips and tricks to help grow their wealth and achieve financial independence. As a self-confessed finance nerd, Cameron enjoys chatting with industry experts and commentators to leverage their insights to grow your portfolio.

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