Axe government funding to private schools (save $8.3 billion a year) and private hospitals (save $5 billion a year).
Abolish negative gearing.
Offer a government-funded “job guarantee” so everyone who wants to work has a job (cost $22 billion a year).
Add the GST to fresh food (earn $7 billion a year).
Introduce a banking super-profits tax (earn $500 million a year).
Increase the top marginal rate of tax to 50% and apply it to income over $150,000 (would raise close to 1% of GDP a year).
Spend an additional $40-65 billion a year on human services, health, education.
Who says economics is the dismal science? Tuesday’s federal budget looks like being a timid affair, so Crikey thought we’d look elsewhere for good ideas. This week we’ve run five fantasy budgets as we anointed some of the country’s best economics and public policy brains treasurer for a day. We asked them to cost out their proposals and balance their books. They certainly have not held back.
The proposals listed above can be found in the fantasy budgets by Crikey’s Bernard Keane, and economists Bill Mitchell, Richard Denniss and John Quiggin. Today it’s education expert Andrew Norton’s turn — and he’s redirecting government dollars from public to private universities.
You may not agree with losing your private health insurance rebate and paying a new tax on superannuation drawdowns, but these budgets show there is certainly room to move on public spending. There are cuts that can be made, new taxes that can be levied, and there are programs that need much more money.
You won’t see much of this in Tuesday’s budget. The political pygmies of contemporary politics may be too scared of the opinion polls to reshape public finances in any significant way — but that shouldn’t stop us doing their work for them.
How’s the job guarantee going to work? Infrastructure? People bitch about the NBN, wait til you see what they’ll do for a higher priced infrastructure like VFT network.
For the items you’ve costed, a mental addup shows it’s in the red to tens of billions. Way to go.
I don’t agree with Alan Davies piece on cyclists (neither does the judge). Cyclists should suffer the same fate as tractors, and not allowed on roads. They really are a dangerous nuisance and not fit to share the roads with cars,never. Purpose built bike lanes should be separated from purpose built vehicle lanes.
I’d vote for the above except #3 & 4 – 3 sounds like the UK’s Low Income Tax Credit which subsidises Gradgrind employer’s (in the US such luckless wage slaves rely on tips to eat on <$8ph minimum wage)and fresh, unprocessed food is the only thing that will stop the poor become obese macjunkies.
BTW, not sure BK could be described as above – some of the country’s best economics and public policy brains. Good journalist though.