Budget 2023: it’s on for young and old

POOR STILL POOR

Recipients of JobSeeker (700,000 people), Austudy (35,000), and the youth allowance (200,000) will get $40 more a fortnight, or $2.85 more a day, the federal budget has revealed. That means the JobSeeker rate of $691.30 a fortnight will become $731.30, an increase of 5.7% as Crikey reports — except for those aged 55-59. Their rate will increase by $92.10 extra a fortnight — lifting theirs to $785.20 (up 13%). Treasurer Jim Chalmers says that cohort is mostly women, who often have no savings or super. Going back to the general JobSeeker rate a moment, it’s hard to imagine paying for rent, food and medication on $52 a day. About 20% of JobSeeker recipients work, so four out of five have to do so. Think of the budget as giving “targeted support for Australia’s most vulnerable”, the government says. We’ll do our very best, I guess.

Among the “targeted support” measures: about 5 million people will get up to $500 in energy bill relief, Yahoo reports, except if you’re in WA, NT or the ACT where you’ll get only $350 off. The recipients are pensioners, veterans, seniors and other concession card holders, recipients of the carer allowance, family tax benefit, and anyone eligible for state electricity concession schemes. Plus, the financial reward for GPs to treat vulnerable patients for “free” will triple, a rise dubbed “the largest in Medicare’s 40-year history” by Health Minister Mark Butler, Guardian Australia reports. GPs will get a $20.65 bonus in the city and a $39.65 bonus in rural areas for bulk-billing appointments for 11.6 million children, concession card holders and pensioners, as the SMH ($) explains. GPs are bulk-billing less and less because the dosh they get back from Medicare ($39 a consultation plus the current incentive of $6.60) is falling short of their costs, as The Australian ($) reports. OK, what else? A million people getting rent assistance (it’s $157.20 a fortnight) will get $180 as of September 20, the AFR ($) reports. Greens Leader Adam Bandt wasn’t convinced, saying the budget “leaves millions behind, leaving people in poverty while billionaires get tax cuts”, as The Conversation reports.

BIBS AND BOBS

I’m just going to sprint through some other budget revelations now: politicians are getting $159 million in the budget for “additional frontline electorate staff resources” and a higher traveller expense allowance, Guardian Australia reports. We’ll also be launching a $58 million national anti-scam centre, with $10 million for an SMS-sender ID registry — you might’ve got a swindling text message purporting to be from names like “Telstra” or “Tax Office” in the message ID. In fact, some did last night — phishing myGov text messages promising victims an instant $750 to help pay for living expenses popped up on phones across the country, The Daily Mail reports. Smokers will pay 5% more excise a year (it’s $23.29 at the moment), as the ABC reports, and our wildlife would be happy about a $355 million funding boost for national parks and marine reserves.

The broadcasters will be safeguarded too, as Crikey reports, with the ABC getting $6 billion and the SBS $1.8 billion. It followed $526 million in cuts at the ABC across eight Coalition budgets at a cost of 640 jobs. Small businesses with a turnover of less than $10 million will get an increase to the instant asset write-off threshold to $20,000 as of July 1, meaning any business can deduct the entire cost of an asset less than that. There’ll be $64.1 million to take on the backlog of veteran support claims, the government says, as well as more money for complex case management, rehabilitation, pharmacy and health approvals. If you go overseas for any reason you have to pay $10 more from July 2024 — the passenger movement charge (the what now?!) will increase to $70.

TRUMP’S GUILTY VERDICT

A jury has found former US president Donald Trump sexually abused E Jean Carroll and ordered him to pay a total of US$5 million (A$7.4 million), The New York Times ($) reports. However, jurors did not find he raped Carroll, a former columnist for Elle magazine, in a change room in the mid-1990s. The unanimous verdict came after three short hours of deliberation between six men and three women. Now Trump has to pay Carroll US$2 million in damages for the sexual abuse, plus US$3 million for defamation after he repeatedly called Carroll a liar, as The Guardian continues. It’s a significant win in the #MeToo era, though importantly this was not a criminal trial. Carroll sued Trump for battery and defamation in a civil case, and the jury was tasked with determining Trump’s “liability” — that is, whether he is legally responsible for harming Carroll. Check out the verdict sheet template jurors had to fill in — it kind of looks like a test from school.

Trump took to Truth Social after the verdict overnight where he wrote, in caps, “I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHO THIS WOMAN IS. THIS VERDICT IS A DISGRACE — A CONTINUATION OF THE GREATEST WITCH HUNT OF ALL TIME!”. A spokesperson said Trump would appeal the result and called it a “bogus case” that targeted him for being the “frontrunner” in the presidential race. Before the verdict, Trump said: “Despite being a current political candidate and leading all others in both parties, [I] am not allowed to speak or defend myself, even as hard-nosed reporters scream questions about this case at me.” Hmm, not quite — Trump’s lawyers decided not to call him to the witness stand. I wonder why. It’s hardly the last of Trump’s legal woes — there’s a June 27 hearing for an indictment that Trump allegedly falsified business records, of which you can see the briefing schedule here.

ON A LIGHTER NOTE

A little old lady in a small provincial French village was pottering around when she heard a smart rap at the door. Colette Ferry, 92, was met by two police officers, as The Guardian tells it, who informed her that they were there about a noise complaint. It wasn’t the result of late-night raving on the part of Ferry, or even a repetitive enjoyment of Taylor Swift’s hot new album, Speak Now. No, this noise complaint was about frogs. Three frogs, in fact, who had taken up residence in Ferry’s garden pond. A tetchy neighbour couldn’t bear it another night longer. Ze cannot sleep! Ze cannot think! All ze can hear is zat infernal croaking! An amused Ferry told a local radio station the frogs were just squatters who turned up one day to liven things up for everyone. And they did! “They’re in and out of the water playing with my fish. It’s my entertainment!” the nonagenarian joked.

Until a man turned up at her door, raving about needing to get some shut-eye for his très important job. “But I did not expect the gendarmes,” Ferry said, using the word for French police. “Especially not for frogs!” It’s not clear whether the man was a newcomer, but it’s an ongoing spat in rural France. Parisian city-slickers pour into the countryside for some rest and relaxation but are met with clanging church bells, groaning cows, clucky chickens and rowdy frogs. It got so bad that a judge had to rule that Maurice the rooster was permitted to crow in 2019, and in 2021 French politicians passed an actual law to protect the noises and smells of the countryside. Ferry doesn’t care for a legal battle. Remove the frogs, if you please. In fact, she’s looking forward to watching the police officers try. “That’ll be fun … they jump,” the gleeful old lady said.

Hoping you can laugh at frogs today too, whatever that looks like for you.

SAY WHAT?

Someone should tell Angus Taylor we’re not actually in the G7.

Anthony Albanese

The shadow treasurer was red-faced after telling Insiders that Australia has the highest inflation in the G7. Not only is Australia not in the G7, we wouldn’t have the highest rate of inflation even if we were. Fantastic. Great move. Well done Angus.

CRIKEY RECAP

Rank hypocrisy: Seymour takes the fall as PwC enters reputation rehab mode

DAVID HARDAKER

“As a partnership, PwC has no legislative obligation to report its profits and salaries, notwithstanding the hundreds of millions of dollars it is paid in public money. Its corporate mythology has it that this bounty in profits is due to its singular abilities to see things which others don’t.

“The ordinary person might have the quaint view that PwC is a group of accountants turned greed-driven corporate denizens — but that is not how PwC sees itself or wishes to be seen by others.”

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Pakistan internet cut as violence erupts after arrest of ex-PM Imran Khan (The Guardian)

How El Chapo’s sons built a fentanyl empire poisoning America (Reuters)

Mamma Mia! Italians are fuming at Austrian-Chinese mozzarella (euronews)

Sam Bankman-Fried, in first detailed defence, seeks to dismiss charges (The New York Times)

Māori Party co-leaders kicked out of the House over welcome for Meka Whaitiri (Stuff)

Trudeau says expulsion of Chinese diplomat shows Canada ‘will not be intimidated’ (CBC)

Russia’s future rests on Ukraine war, Putin tells Victory Day parade (BBC)

THE COMMENTARIAT

The Liberals had nine years. It took Labor just one to snatch the Holy Grail — Peter Hartcher (The Age) ($): “It’s long been perceived as the better party on health, and now it’s spending more on Medicare. It’s long been regarded as the better party on social support, and it’s increasing welfare payments. Not drastically. Albanese’s attitude to change is to pursue renovation, not revolution. He is setting out methodically to cement Labor as the dominant force at the centre of the political system, incrementally building credibility on the left and right simultaneously.

“Was there some luck involved in delivering this year’s surplus? Of course. Strong employment has generated bonus income tax revenues and unexpectedly low dole payments. High prices for commodity exports added to the tax take too. But the Coalition also had lucky years with record commodity prices. They failed to turn the luck into surpluses. Josh Frydenberg came close to budget balance in his first budget, with a deficit of just $690 million. He’s told colleagues that he regrets missing the chance to deliver a surplus when it was in reach. That’s a regret Chalmers will never know. And the Albanese government has made some serious efforts at restraint.”

Yes, the Met police threw royal protesters into cells for no good reason — but at least they regret it — Marina Hyde (The Guardian): “The anti-monarchy group Republic participated in months of briefings and meetings with the Met concerning their protest at last Saturday’s coronation, in which they were informed that their peaceful plans were lawful. As it turned out on the day, however, six members of the group, including its chief executive Graham Smith, were arrested before the protest even began. According to the Met’s account: ‘They were held on suspicion of conspiracy to cause public nuisance. We seized lock-on devices.’

“And yet … did they? The police seem instead to have seized the luggage straps the protesters used to secure their placards. The force has now expressed “regret” that these arrests took place at all. This lengthy statement adds: ‘It was not clear at the time that at least one of the group stopped had been engaging with police protest liaison team officers ahead of the event.’ Hmmm. If only there had been some way of establishing this situation in the moment, perhaps on some kind of communication device? Mobile police have carried personal radios since the late 1960s, so maybe the technology still feels new and unwieldy to them …”

HOLD THE FRONT PAGE

WHAT’S ON TODAY

Online

• The Australia Institute’s economists Richard Denniss, Matt Grudnoff and Eliza Littleton will chat about the federal budget in a webinar.

Ngunnawal Country (also known as Canberra)

• Treasurer Jim Chalmers will give his post-budget address at the National Press Club.

• Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney will address the Wiyi Yani U Thangani (Women’s Voices) National Summit at a landmark meeting of First Nations women, at the National Convention Centre.