Will the federal budget's relief package solve a problem or ignore it?
ABCIs it possible for a government to dole out $14.6 billion and not stoke the inflation fires? It is a good example of inflation creating inflation, where regulated service providers like water and toll roads are allowed to lift prices either to recoup costs or maintain returns above inflation. Fact check: Federal government debt Treasurer Jim Chalmers says that Labor inherited a trillion dollars of "Liberal debt" when it came to office, and that Labor's share of that, left to the previous Coalition government was "a tiny fraction". All up, the treasurer's cost-of-living relief package is estimated to cost $14.6 billion, firing up a debate within the economics world about the wisdom of splashing money about to counter rising costs. The UK instituted a similar plan last year, but inflation continues to surge, and the UK statistician ruled that the rebates had to be classed as increased income rather than reduced expenditure.
History of this topic
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