politics
Treasurer Delivers 2026 Federal Budget
The federal budget for 2026 will be handed down tonight by the Treasurer. The government is expected to break several election pledges in the document. A new report shows median rent is unaffordable for households on median incomes in all but 10 Australian electorates.
May 11, 5:40 PM·2m read5 sources
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The Sydney Morning HeraldAudio version
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Officials have indicated the budget will show a stronger position than forecast in December, citing spending restraint and policy decisions that contribute positively to the bottom line rather than detract from it. The focus will be on resilience and reform, including efforts to rebalance the tax system to better align the treatment of income from work with income earned in other ways.
A senior government figure said the budget would demonstrate both spending restraint and a stronger overall position. The official added that decisions had been made to improve the budget outcome compared with earlier projections.
A new analysis has found that median rent is unaffordable for a household on the median income in all but 10 electorates across the country. Anglicare Australia's Rental Affordability Snapshot shows the housing crisis now affects even those on median incomes, not only the lowest earners.
In 140 of the 150 federal electorates, renting is out of reach for a median-income household. The report states this should ring alarm bells in every part of politics, as the tax system and housing market are overwhelmingly not working, particularly for younger Australians.
There is an urgency now to fixing this, according to the analysis. The findings come as the budget is delivered amid ongoing cost-of-living pressures.
The government is preparing to rebalance the tax system to treat income from work more fairly compared with other forms of income. Officials described this as making the tax system both fairer and stronger. Spending restraint has been applied in recent decisions to improve the budget position.
The resulting document is expected to reflect a better fiscal outlook than anticipated late last year. The budget speech will be presented tonight, with live coverage tracking reactions from both government and opposition figures. Deputy Liberal leader comments suggested the Coalition should pay close attention to recent byelection results in Farrer as an indicator of voter sentiment.
