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Australians are demanding cost of living relief in Tuesday’s pre-election Budget as they continue to battle skyrocketing grocery prices, medical bills and rent.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers says his fourth federal Budget will provide ‘substantial, meaningful and responsible cost-of-living help’.
He has also insisted the three Rs – ‘repair, relief and reform’ – will guide his economic decisions.
But Labor’s chances of re-election will no doubt be the single most important thing at front of mind for Dr Chalmers and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese when the Budget is handed down on Tuesday evening.
It is expected they will splurge taxpayer funds on a raft of new spending aimed at alleviating the cost of living crisis, despite grim warnings that the government will return a deficit after two consecutive Budget surpluses.
Indeed, economic forecasts are expecting a decade of Budget blowouts, with the Coalition grimly predicting ‘red ink as far as the eye can see’.
But that may not matter to battlers currently doing it tough.
Over 80 per cent of people want to see more government handouts and spending to help with the cost of living crisis, according to a recent poll.
This was very much the case when Daily Mail Australia canvassed everyday Aussies about what they were struggling with most – and what they are hoping to see in Labor’s make-or-break Budget.
‘I didn’t think it would be this hard’ to find a home
Divorced mother-of-three Nicole, 39, said it had proved challenging to return to the rental market after 16 years of homeownership.
The veteran business support analyst was getting some morning sun outside her Parramatta office on Thursday when she spoke to Daily Mail Australia.
Nicole was paying $210 per week towards her mortgage before a recent divorce forced her to rejoin the rental market.
After a prolonged search, the single mother settled on a $700-a-week, four-bedroom home in Mount Druitt, a suburb in Sydney’s outer west.
‘I didn’t think it would be so hard to find somewhere… at every inspection, you’d see 30 to 40 people and the rent was always going above the listing price,’ she said.
Divorced mum Nicole (pictured), 39, said finding a rental property for her three children was much more difficult and more expensive than she had expected
Nicole said she missed the security of home ownership.
‘With a rental, you just never get the same level of security or certainty you get with a home, knowing you’re not going to be kicked out at some future date,’ she said.
‘The inspections can be really invasive and you don’t get a lot of notice.’
While no promises have been made regarding renters from the government, Daily Mail Australia’s political editor Peter Van Onselen has speculated there might be ‘a new rental assistance of some description that’s designed to further lock in the support of younger voters in particular’ in the Budget.
Nicole’s personal budget was already stretched thin with private school fees for three kids which she said cost her up to $15,000 for one year of high school education.
‘It’s a non-negotiable for me. I just want to give my kids a religious education, I’m a woman of faith,’ she said.
But rising costs led her ex-husband to insist they consider relocating their children to public schools.
‘It’s only now becoming a conversation, with the recent cost of living issues,’ she said.
‘It just wasn’t something we ever spoke about but now, with the cost of living, my ex-husband wants it back on the table.’
Jim Chalmers confirmed he would be handing down a Budget in deficit next Tuesday, but Aussies are eager for some much-needed relief (Students at Sydney University are pictured)
Asked which costs had caused the most financial stress, Nicole said it was difficult to narrow it down.
‘I don’t drive but transport costs are getting up there, not to mention grocery bills, energy and bills too’.
We already know there will be some assistance with rising energy costs.
The Labor government has revealed that it will extend the energy rebate, so everyone in Australia will receive $150 off their energy bills from July 1.
The non-means tested measure will be automatically applied to everyone’s electricity bills in quarterly instalments, building on the $300 rebate delivered in last year’s Budget.
The measure, which will cost $1.8 billion, is expected to reduce electricity bills by 7.5 per cent.
Following the example set by her own single mother, Nicole was a long-time Labor voter before more recently switching to the Coalition for economic reasons.
The mum-of-three is still unsure who she will vote for at the coming federal election but added that ‘something needs to change’.
Nicole is exactly the kind of undecided voter Labor will be hoping to win over with grand spending announcements.
Sydney restaurant owner Sabrea Polat (pictured), 58, said bills, supply costs and cash-strapped customers had brought his business to the verge of closure
If you’re staying afloat, it’s not by much
Sabrea Polat, 58, has owned businesses on Glebe Point Road for more than 28 years.
In his nearly three decades of experience, Mr Polat said the last few years have been his most challenging yet.
Mr Polat owns and operates Otto Norba, a popular Turkish restaurant and cafe frequented by a mix of long-time residents and students.
During the Covid pandemic, Mr Polat said up to 90 per cent of nearby cafes were forced to close.
‘It was nearly impossible to get the right supplies to make menu items affordable to our customers and, even then, not enough people were coming through the door,’ he said.
Asked whether business conditions had eased since the pandemic, the restaurateur said: ‘It’s not as bad… but not by a lot’.
Mr Polat said vegetables and eggs were the worst-affected ingredients, with a single tray of eggs running at about $65.
This is unlikely to improve in the short term following the destruction wreaked by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
‘We also anticipate there will be some impact on fruit and vegetable costs, depending on how much of the farmland has been impacted,’ Mr Chalmers said last week.
But it’s not just food costs where Mr Polat is feeling the pinch.
‘Rent and gas are killing us, it’s just gotten out of control,’ he added.
‘How can we ask customers to come here when they are being affected at so many points along the line – their own rent, insurance, groceries… It just doesn’t work’.
He added that parking outside the cafe had recently become too expensive for his long-time customers, many of whom liked to drive from surrounding suburbs.
‘They can’t afford to come here anymore… We are having to rely on students and people who live within walking distance,’ he said.
Reluctantly, Mr Polat has increased menu prices to absorb some of the extra costs but added that keeping prices affordable was a top priority.
He hopes the government will focus on energy relief for small businesses while supporting those who choose to source their ingredients locally.
On both points, Mr Polat might be lucky. The aforementioned $150 energy rebate also applies to a million small businesses like his own.
Meanwhile, Mr Albanese has signalled there will be a ‘Buy Australian’ aspect to Tuesday’s Budget.
While details remain thin on the ground, this could help businesses such as Mr Polat’s which favour local suppliers.
‘I would urge Australians, if they’re in a local shop, to look to buy Australian – that’s the one way that consumers can assist to create jobs here and support our local industries,’ Mr Albanese said two weeks ago, as he promised more details in the Budget.
Drummoyne resident Aphrodite Kapeleris (pictured), 40, said homeownership was becoming a fantasy for her generation, making it harder to build a family
Home ownership is a pipe-dream
Aphrodite Kapeleris, 40, relies on a single income without kids to afford an apartment in Drummoyne in Sydney’s inner west.
‘Like everyone I know, we’re just hoping to one day buy a home without all that much chance of really getting there,’ she said.
Ms Kapeleris is the child of Greek immigrants.
‘It was different for them. Back then, owning a home was everything and it was just a lot easier to do,’ she said.
‘Of course, they sacrificed a lot to get what they have but it just seems that little bit harder for people now.
‘And it’s hard to build a family without having the security of a home.’
Deciding that home ownership was a far-off prospect, Ms Kapeleris recently went on an extended trip overseas.
‘Naively, I thought I could maybe do both: travel for a while and then return and find a way to enter the property market,’ she said.
Australia’s cafes and restaurants are feeling the pinch (pictured, the Boathouse at Balmoral)
Ms Kapeleris said she would live closer to the beach if she could afford to but is happy to settle for visiting on the weekends (Balmoral Beach in Mosman is pictured)
‘Increasingly, it’s not looking very likely. A lot of my friends thought in the same way. It’s an example of how these things affect values between generations.
‘You can’t afford to buy a home like your parents did, so you start thinking of different ways to plan your life.’
But Ms Kapeleris may benefit from the government’s recent $850million commitment to help first-time home buyers – bringing its total funding to $6.3billion.
The money will largely be used to increase income caps for their help-to-buy scheme, which allows people placing their first step on the property ladder to buy with a deposit as low as two per cent.
The new funding commitment will increase income caps from $90,000 to $100,000 for individuals and from $120,000 to $160,000 for joint applicants and single parents.
Property price caps will also be linked to the average house price in each state and territory, with the government predicting it will make participants eligible for five million more homes across the country.
Another $49.3million will be offered to the states and territories to increase programs aimed at boosting the construction of prefabricated and modular homes.
But with rising food, transport and entertainment costs, Ms Kapeleris said it had even become difficult to plan events that would suit each of her friends.
‘We have different financial situations, different priorities. With everything costing so much, even a meal at a restaurant, it’s getting harder to justify those really important social occasions,’ she explained.
Ms Kapeleris wants the government to prioritise health in the upcoming Budget.
‘It’s something that doesn’t get all that much attention, but financial stress can have terrible health consequences,’ she said.
‘I’d love to see something that might help homebuyers, of course, but it’s important to see it at a high-level… to know that these stresses come back to bite.’
Ms Kapeleris might be in luck. The Albanese government has already unveiled a massive $8.5billion promise to increase bulk-billing incentives.
The policy was quickly matched by the Coalition, who promised to devote $9billion to reforming Medicare if they are elected in May.
Medicines will also be cheaper under new plans announced by Mr Albanese last week to reduce the cost of all scripts under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme to just $25.
The last time that PBS medicines cost no more than $25 was over 20 years ago.
Dr Chalmers has committed to delivering a women’s health package aimed at reproductive health, menopause and endometriosis.
A further $644million has also been announced to open an extra 50 Medicare urgent care clinics.
Sappho Books co-owner Gail Harper (left) said it would take ‘a lot of books’ to keep her store afloat amid rising input costs and exorbitant rent
The high price of rising costs hitting everyone
Glebe bookstore owner, Gail Harper, said rising supply costs had pressured the store’s bottom line.
‘We don’t want to pass it onto our consumer base – who are mostly students – so we’ve been absorbing the costs ourselves,’ Ms Harper said.
Though Ms Harper only took over Sappho Books two years ago, she said she had already seen notable increases in rent and supplies.
‘Glebe Point Road is notoriously expensive…It’s just so high.’
Only the week prior, the costs of a single bag of coffee had increased by 30 per cent with power bills also on the rise.
Despite the financial challenges, Ms Harper said her 18 employees had continued to receive annual wage increases.
Asked how the store plans to meet persistently high costs, she said: ‘It’s going to take a lot of books.’
University of Sydney student Emilia, 19, (pictured, left) recently took on a third job to meet her expenses while her friend, Swikriti (right) said socialising was getting too expensive
Three jobs and fast-forwarding recorded lectures
University of Sydney student Emilia, 19, works three jobs on top of a full-time study schedule in order to meet ‘nearly unaffordable’ living expenses.
Emilia said the rent on her Kensington apartment had increased substantially in recent months, along with noticeable hikes in grocery and transport costs.
She works as a hair salon assistant for two different employers and a lab assistant for a third business in order to stay afloat.
‘It sounds crazy, but it’s not even unusual. I have a lot of friends who are working at least two jobs,’ she said.
Asked what kind of relief she would most like to see from Tuesday’s Budget, Emilia said Centrelink payments needed to be increased.
They already have seen a marginal increase on March 20 to address inflation.
The latest indexation means that a for a single recipient of JobSeeker payment aged 22 and over without children, they will see a $3.10 increase to their fortnightly payments, bringing the payment to $789.90 including the energy supplement.
Meanwhile, a single recipient aged 22 or over with children, the payment will increase by $3.30 per fortnight.
But this marginal increase may not be enough for Emilia who said increases to Austudy payments announced by the Albanese Government last December and tied to indexation were ‘minimal’.
Since January 1, Austudy payments have increased in line with inflation, with single or partnered Austudy recipients without dependent children receiving $670.30 per fortnight.
Friend and fellow student Swikriti agreed with Emilia that living costs were becoming untenable.
‘Food and drinks are getting too expensive. It’s costing us at least $15 for a drink, so a lot of students are considering just not going out at all,’ she said.
Emilia agreed, adding she didn’t drink and rarely went out.
At least the situation will not get any worse, after the Albanese Government promised the Budget would confirm freeze in the excise indexation increases on draught beer for two years.
The measure, which is estimated to cost taxpayers $200million in lost tax revenue, should mean that the price of a schooner remains the same.
Mr Albanese described it as a ‘common sense measure’ that was ‘good for beer drinkers, good for brewers and good for pubs’.
Treasurer Dr Chalmers was more circumspect, calling it a ‘modest change’ given it will not reduce prices, only temporarily freezing the tax, and did not apply to take-away beer.
Asked how she managed to find time for her studies, Emilia said she had begun watching her recorded lectures on double speed for efficiency.
Exchange students Zara Jegerings, 22, and Sarah Rinsch, 24, are pictured enjoying a coffee break outside Western Sydney University in Parramatta
Exchange student Sarah Rinsch, 24, said she was shocked when she first went to buy groceries in Sydney.
‘I love it here and I’m not complaining, but it was really quite expensive,’ she said.
‘In the Netherlands, where I’m from, it’s expensive too but not quite as bad as it seems to be here.’
The government has promised a paltry $2.9million over three years to help suppliers ‘stand up to the big supermarkets’, after a damning recent report by the consumer watchdog into Coles’ and Woolworths’ duopoly.
The review, which called for a raft of changes including action on shrinkflation, found that they were the most profitable supermarkets in the world.
Fellow traveller Zara Jegerings, 22, said she had noticed substantial increases in standard grocery items since the start of the new year.
Both women said it appeared to be easier for students to get rent relief and student payments in the Netherlands.
‘It’s not that it’s necessarily always cheaper there, it’s more just that students have an easier time getting support from the government,’ Ms Rinsch said.
‘Overall, I’m not complaining because I chose to come here but it’s a very expensive city.’
Medical bills and more support for young people
Retired public servant, Stu Tubbs, 72, was enjoying solving crosswords with his two dogs on the Balmoral promenade on Thursday afternoon.
Asked how he thought retirees were faring under the current Labor government, Mr Tubbs said ‘it’s the prescriptions, the medical bills that really start to add up’.
‘When you get to my age, your body stops working the way it once did,’ he said.
The aforementioned promise to reduce the cost of all scripts under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme to just $25 will go some way in helping Mr Tubbs’ situation.
And as a long-time Labor voter, he said he will likely vote Labor once again.
Retiree Stu Tubbs, 72, is pictured enjoying a trip to Balmoral Beach with his two dogs
‘It’s not really an economic decision for me, though… truth be told, I don’t expect Labor to do a lot for me,’ he said.
Mr Tubbs lives in an affluent suburb on Sydney’s lower north shore.
He added he was ‘self-funded and self-sufficient, but hardly well-off’.
Having been raised in a working class family, Mr Tubbs said providing for his three kids who continue to live at home was his top priority.
Two of his children attend university while the third is a year 11 student.
‘Things aren’t easy for young people in this country, university fees are expensive, rent is high and home ownership is a far-off prospect,’ he said.
It will cut around $16billion in debt, including all HELP, VET Student Loan, Australian Apprenticeship Support Loan and other income-contingent student support loan accounts that exist from June 1.
Asked whether he was eager for his children to move out of home, Mr Tubbs smiled and added: ‘I can always travel on weekends’.
Dental costs are ‘unbelievably expensive’
After a long career as a researcher, Collin Wellings joined his wife Sue as a church pastor where the two work together.
The couple want more help with their medical bills, more specifically dental.
‘Medical bills are prohibitive,’ Mr Wellings said.
‘Dental work in particular is just unbelievably expensive.’
Collin and Sue Wellings said medical bills were stretching the budgets of elderly Australians
Ms Wellings agreed, adding the price of getting a new tooth could cost the equivalent of buying a new vehicle.
‘I’m not sure what it might look like, but relief to medical bills is what I’d most like to see in this country,’ Mr Wellings said.
‘Apart from that, I’d simply ask whoever is next in government to try to balance the Budget but I don’t see that happening.’
‘But really, you can’t blame them, at the end of the day… what with the uncertainty from the US, from Trump.’
Indeed, there are grim warnings that another Budget surplus will not be returned for at least ten years.
Paying the interest bill on Australia’s national debt is now one of the most expensive line items in the entire Budget behind welfare, health and defence.
US President Donald Trump’s tariff war on Australia could hit the nation’s coffers hard, if they extend beyond steel and aluminium.
‘The global economy is volatile and unpredictable,’ Dr Chalmers said last week
‘There’s a new US administration disrupting trade, a slowdown in China, war in eastern Europe and a fragile ceasefire in the Middle East, division and dissatisfaction around the world.’
‘We’ve seen extreme market volatility in the US and elsewhere, as a consequence.’
Dr Chalmers warned that ‘even in the most benign scenario, global growth over the next three years is expected to be its weakest since the 1990s’.
Middle class families going hungry
Elderly crossing guard, Fay Prentice, has lived in Glebe since she was 10-years-old.
In the more than 60 years since, things have never been so difficult for residents of the inner-west suburb as they are now, she said.
‘You should see the way some people are living. It’s just not right,’ she said.
‘There are people who can’t afford food, they get cold as ice during the night because they can’t pay the heating bills.
‘When you’re broke, you stop spending on things like groceries and, if you do keep going with them, you’re buying the unhealthy stuff’.
Glebe Youth Centre CEO Mitra Gusheh (pictured, left) with Youth and Community Engagement Practitioner Jen Norton (right)
Aunty Kath Farawell and crossing guard Fay Prentice (pictured together) are pictured visiting Glebe Youth Centre on Thursday
Glebe Youth Centre provides food assistance to about 75 local families
Ms Prentice was visiting a local food bank run every week from the Glebe Youth Centre, an independent organisation that runs mainly on private donations.
Though Food Circle delivers food to more than 75 local families, chief executive Mitra Gusheh said the centre encourages walk-ins where possible.
‘Once they’re in the door, they can find access to a community of social workers including volunteers and paid employees and many of them live in the same community, with the same people,’ she said.
‘Things are really difficult for our community. When they’re earning just enough to meet their rent and power bills, they forego food’.
Community Engagement Practitioner Jen Norton said the centre had begun receiving a new mix of people since the pandemic.
‘We’re getting some middle class families for the first time as well as a lot more international students,’ she said.
‘A lot of middle class people are starting to really fall through the gap. They don’t get the same public benefits but they can’t really meet their bills either.
‘The biggest things people want help with are fresh food items like fruit, milk, cheese, meat. But there’s other things too like coffee and toiletries… Toiletries, in particular, are getting really hard to find on the cheap.’
Local artist Kathryn Dodd Farawell said the rising cost of bills were forcing many public housing residents to stop buying groceries.
Activist Carolyn Ienna said she narrowly avoided homelessness after being relocated from privately owned social housing near Wentworth Park in Glebe
‘The people around here, they’re hungry, they’re getting sick. It’s no way to live and without this place [the Glebe Youth Centre], they’d have no hope.
‘The past few years have been the worst we’ve seen in a long time. People say with the [Covid-19 pandemic] gone that it’s easier now.
‘It’s not getting any easier, I can tell you that.’
Local activist Carolyn Ienna said the public housing crisis was forcing residents to live on the streets.
‘I can speak from personal experience, when you live in privately owned social housing there’s no security,’ she said.
‘They can tell you to leave with no notice and I’d have been left with nowhere to go if a friend of mine hadn’t helped me to find a place. The government is killing public housing and it’s everyday Australians that are paying the price.’
