GOVERNMENT SPENDING POLICY – AUSTRALIA

Quantum leap into a danger zone

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Original article by Sarah Elks
The Australian – Page: 5 : 20-May-24

Quantum Brilliance’s co-founder Marcus Doherty says the federal government should invest in a broad range of quantum computing technologies, rather than backing a single project. The federal and Queensland governments recently committed nearly $1bn to PsiQuantum’s project to build a fault-tolerant quantum computer in Brisbane. Doherty contends that government agencies should invest in the quantum computing technology that best meets their needs; he notes that the Department of Defence in particular will probably require quantum computers that are portable, whereas PsiQuantum’s proposed photonics-based quantum computer is expected to be the size of a large warehouse.

CORPORATES
QUANTUM BRILLIANCE, PSQUANTUM, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE

Quantum leap into a danger zone

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Original article by Sarah Elks
The Australian – Page: 5 : 20-May-24

Quantum Brilliance’s co-founder Marcus Doherty says the federal government should invest in a broad range of quantum computing technologies, rather than backing a single project. The federal and Queensland governments recently committed nearly $1bn to PsiQuantum’s project to build a fault-tolerant quantum computer in Brisbane. Doherty contends that government agencies should invest in the quantum computing technology that best meets their needs; he notes that the Department of Defence in particular will probably require quantum computers that are portable, whereas PsiQuantum’s proposed photonics-based quantum computer is expected to be the size of a large warehouse.

CORPORATES
QUANTUM BRILLIANCE, PSQUANTUM, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE

Labor splashes billions on cost of living relief

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Original article by Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 15-May-24

The 2024 budget papers show that the federal government expects to post a surplus of $9.3bn for 2023-24. However, there will be a combined budget deficit of $122bn over the forward estimates period. Meanwhile, the budget features $7.8bn of new spending on cost-of-living relief, headlined by a $3.5bn energy rebate; this will provide every household with a $300 credit on their electricity bill, to be paid in four quarterly instalments. Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the cost-of-living measures will reduce the inflation rate by 0.75 of a percentage point in 2024 and 0.5 per cent in 2025. The Treasury expects inflation to fall to 3.5 per cent by June and 2.75 per cent by mid-2025.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Cost-of-living handouts that bust inflation a trick

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Original article by Patrick Commins, Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 14-May-24

The federal government has confirmed that the 2024 budget will feature measures to combat inflation and the cost-of-living crisis, including electricity bill rebates and rental assistance. However, former Reserve Bank of Australia board member Warwick McKibbin contends that using government subsidies to combat inflation is a "political trick" that will not address underlying price pressures in the economy. McKibbin has also questioned the Treasury’s forecast that inflation will return to the RBA’s target range of 2-3 per cent by the end of 2024. He adds that the Treasury and the RBA have underestimated the inflationary impact of the revised stage-three personal income tax cuts that take effect on 1 July.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

PM set to invest big in green hydrogen

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Original article by Sarah Ison, Rosie Lewis, Jess Malcolm
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 1-May-24

The federal government’s budget on 14 May is expected to include a significant investment in ‘green’ hydrogen. This is tipped to exceed the $2bn that Labor committed to its Hydrogen Headstart program in 2023. Clean Energy Council CEO Kane Thornton notes that the government considered that investment to be a "down payment" on its support for Australia’s nascent hydrogen industry. There is speculation that the government will provide the hydrogen industry with direct subsidies; the options under consideration are said to include a tax credit model and a reverse auction process.

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CLEAN ENERGY COUNCIL LIMITED

Spending cuts must take heat off rates

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 30-Apr-24

Economists are calling on the federal government to cut net discretionary spending in its 14 May budget, contending that such spending is making it harder for the Reserve Bank to combat inflation. Shadow treasurer Angus Taylor and Coalition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume said on Monday that the government should "restore budget discipline" by reintroducing the Coalition’s 23.9 per cent tax-to-GDP cap. Treasurer Jim Chalmers responded by claiming that the Coalition is advocating cuts to spending.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

PM signals budget help for families, small business

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Original article by James Massola
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 4-Apr-24

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will use a speech on Thursday to state that small businesses and families will be ‘front and centre’ again in the federal government’s budget on 14 May. He will note that assisting families and small businesses with their energy bills was a key priority of the 2023 budget. Albanese’s comments in his Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia speech will heighten expectations that the government is set to extend its Energy Bill Relief fund, which is slated to end on 30 June. He will also emphasise the importance of small businesses to Australia’s future prosperity, noting that they are job creators, innovators and early adopters of technology such as clean energy.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, COUNCIL OF SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Tax take and spending near record highs

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 8-Mar-24

Analysis of the latest national accounts data shows that federal, state and local government spending equated to 27.2 per cent of GDP in 2023, which is nearly a record high. Tax revenue across all three levels of government was also a near-record high of 30.3 per cent of GDP. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has indicated that his primary focus will shift from containing inflation to stimulating the economy. However, he has ruled out a big increase in government spending, while economists contend that reducing debt should be the federal government’s priority.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

PM pledges $2b green energy fund

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 5 : 5-Mar-24

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will announce on Tuesday that the federal government will establish a $2 billion finance facility to help fund green energy and infrastructure investment in South-East Asia. The facility is one of five recommendations by special envoy to South-East Asia Nicholas Moore that the government will adopt and announce on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit. Moore told the summit on Monday that South-East Asia will need an estimated 454 gigawatts of additional generation capacity between 2021 and 2050; he said that much of the extra capacity will need to come from renewable energy sources.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH-EAST ASIAN NATIONS

Labor’s drone ship gamble

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Original article by Cameron Stewart
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 21-Feb-24

The federal government will increase its spending on defence to 2.4 per cent of GDP from the early 2030s, in response to the review of the navy’s surface fleet. The government will increase defence spending by $1.7bn over the four-year forward estimates period and $11.1bn over the next decade. Amongst other things, the government will fast-track the acquisition of 11 new general purpose frigates, while the Hunter-class project will be scaled back from nine frigates to just six. The navy will also retire the first of the ageing Anzac-class frigates immediately, while a second will be decommissioned by 2026. The government will invest in a fleet of semi-autonomous ships that are still being developed in the US; these ‘drone’ ships will each have 32 missile cells, significantly increase the navy’s firepower.

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ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY