This government is desperate to prove it has the economic credentials

Croucher said getting the nation’s accounts back in the black is a feather in the cap of a Labor government anxious to prove it is a reliable economic manager, even as it has all the hallmarks of an ALP budget, with support for those doing it tough.

“It is a budget in surplus and that is a big deal for any treasurer – the first in 15 years,” he said.

“It’s a really big deal for a Labor treasurer because that hasn’t happened since the 1980s.

“And this government is desperate to prove it has the economic credentials.”

Amid the news of a surplus is something that will have a more tangible effect on Australians’ bank balances: forecasts that wages growth will start outpacing inflation in around 12 months.

“There is effectively a promise that your wages will go up and it will go up higher than inflation,” Croucher said.

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“It won’t happen this month or next, but it will start getting easier and eventually you’ll see more money in your finances… about this time next year.”

However, while the promise is a, well, promising one, there’s still plenty left to play out.

”A lot of this budget will be decided on what happens over the next six months,” Croucher said.

“That is: will wages go up? Will there be medicine on the shelves? Will more bulk doctors bulk bill?

“But the overriding factor is: will inflation come down? Because if inflation stays high, then a lot of this gets negated by the fact that everything costs more and that will ultimately decide how this is received.”