View from The Hill: Jim Chalmers on justifying broken promises |
Even before it is delivered on Tuesday, the budget’s looming broken promises are bringing a political backlash.
Anthony Albanese pledged at the election not to touch negative gearing or capital gains tax – the budget is set to alter both.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers is not unaware of the political reaction but argues “what matters most at the end of the day is taking the right decisions for the right reasons”.
“Without coming at the specifics of these policy issues that have been speculated about, if we come to a different view we’ll front up and explain why,” Chalmers tells The Conversation in a pre-budget interview.
His point about “coming to a different view” will be contested. It is more credible that Chalmers and others in Labor wanted to change these taxes all along. But the experiences of former leader Bill Shorten had shown the risks of proposing such changes before an election, and how far Albanese would go was always a question mark.
Chalmers said there were good reasons in the election campaign to focus on supply. “I think there has been a welcome focus now on some of the intergenerational issues in our housing market and in our tax system.
"And I genuinely believe that if........