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It's not the size of the budget deficit that counts; it's how you use it

  • Written by Steven Hamilton, Visiting Fellow, Tax and Transfer Policy Institute, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
It's not the size of the budget deficit that counts; it's how you use itShutterstock

In putting together his unprecedented pandemic budget, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg had two big tasks: to support the economy now, and to kick-start the next boom.

Many commentators seem to be enamoured by the size of the spend. But once you dig into the details, it’s a mixed bag.

The 2020 budget certainly delivers on boosting...

Read more: It's not the size of the budget deficit that counts; it's how you use it

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  4. Budget 2020: promising tax breaks, but relying on hope
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  6. Don't worry about the debt: we need more stimulus to avoid a prolonged recession
  7. The Brussels Finance Conference of 1920: a lesson in the perils of focusing on the past
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  11. The 5-prong plan for a budget that will set us up for the future
  12. Meet the Liveable Income Guarantee: a budget-ready proposal that would prevent unemployment benefits falling off a cliff
  13. Which Australian destinations lose, and which may win, without international tourism
  14. Each budget used to have a gender impact statement. We need it back, especially now
  15. Going cashless isn't straightforward. Ask Sweden, or Zimbabwe
  16. It's about to become easier to lend irresponsibly, to help the recovery
  17. We're facing an insolvency tsunami. With luck, these changes will avert the worst of it
  18. Top economists back boosts to JobSeeker and social housing over tax cuts in pre-budget poll
  19. Frydenberg is setting his budget ambition dangerously low
  20. Google and Facebook shouldn't subsidise journalism, but the government could
  21. Testamentary trusts are one of the last truly outrageous means of avoiding tax
  22. Keating is right. The Reserve Bank should do more. It needs to aim for more inflation
  23. New Zealand companies lag behind others in their reporting on climate change, and that's a risk to their reputation
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  28. The major parties' tax promises are more about ideology and psychology than equity or fairness for New Zealanders
  29. Yes government debt is cheap, but that doesn't mean it comes risk-free
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  38. The sackings at Rio look like a victory for shareholders, but...
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  42. Relax, losing access to China won't make us the 'poor white trash of Asia'
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  49. Morrison is right. All governments will need to spend more to get us out of the crisis
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