Expect less from Canberra: Hockey
Treasurer Joe Hockey has told all Australians to expect less from the Government amid signs the economy will fail to deliver enough money to prevent an even bigger blowout in the Budget bottom line.
As Prime Minister Tony Abbott sought to blame the CSIRO for big staffing cuts forced on it by his Government, the Reserve Bank said the fall-off in the mining boom was going to be bigger than expected.
The bank yesterday sliced its economic growth forecasts for the next two years while signalling it was open to more cuts in official interest rates.
The growth forecasts will feed into Mr Hockey's midyear Budget update, which he has promised to deliver before Christmas.
The Treasurer said in Sydney yesterday the Budget situation had deteriorated and blamed Labor for many of the troubles that he was now confronting.
But in a clear message to voters, Mr Hockey said cuts were coming that would ultimately affect everyone.
"A key part of our job will be starting a national conversation about how we can live within our means, and how we can afford to pay for the things we really need, now and in years to come," he said.
Some of those cuts were flagged before the election, including a 12,000-jobs cut in the public service.
Assistant Treasurer Arthur Sinodinos confirmed between 500 and 600 jobs would go from the CSIRO, the nation's premier science organisation.
The Government also announced plans to abolish or merge 20 advisory committees, including some that date back to the late 1980s.
But analysis from Deloitte Access Economics, out today, suggests many more cuts will be needed to get the Budget back into the black.
It estimates this year's deficit will be close to $40 billion, a $10 billion increase, in large part because of decisions made by Mr Hockey. This should fall to a $18.8 billion in 2014-15.
