2025/26 Federal Budget wrap-up

On Tuesday 25 March 2025, the Treasurer, the Hon Dr Jim Chalmers MP, handed down the latest Federal Budget.

This pre-election Budget lacks the long-term vision and bold reform necessary to address cost of living pressures being felt by the Tasmanian community.

While tax cuts will provide relief for many, those on the lowest of incomes — who do not earn enough to pay tax — get nothing. The Budget missed a critical opportunity to lift Tasmanians out of poverty by raising working age payments to at least $82 a day.

In doing so, the Government has again — for the third year running — ignored the advice of its own Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee to deliver a substantial increase to JobSeeker and related payments.

However, the Budget did contain some welcome investments in health, public education and care services, which help to restore years of cuts. Expanding bulk billing and boosting spending on public education will help communities around the country. 

With many Tasmanians waiting more than a year and a half on the social housing wait list and forced to couch-surf, cram into unsuitable lodgings or even sleep rough, the outlook for an affordable place to call home is bleak.

To this end, we were disappointed to see no new support for renters, however the doubling of funding for homelessness services to around $400 million a year is essential to assist those in acute housing stress. Additional funding ($6.2 million) for homelessness research, advocacy and coordination is a positive announcement. 

Energy bill relief of $150 is welcome for those tens of thousands of Tasmanians who are experiencing energy poverty, but they are poorly targeted and deliver financial support to the wealthiest Australians, at the expense of increased support for those most in need. 

The Government’s total $6.8 billion spend on energy bill rebates could have funded energy efficiency upgrades for every social housing property in Australia, permanently reducing bills by thousands of dollars each year. 

Disability organisations have expressed disappointment about the lack of specific measures in the Budget for people with disability. While the Budget includes funding for Foundational Supports, there is continued uncertainty about whether this funding is contingent on matched funding from the states; and there are no additional funds in the Budget for implementation of the recommendations of the Disability Royal Commission.

We’ve collated feedback and reactions to the Budget from the community services industry, which you can view at the following links:

If you’d like to get in touch with your response to the Budget or have any questions, please contact Stephen Durney, Senior Policy Officer, on (03) 6169 9508 or email Stephen.

More 2025/26 Federal Budget analysis and information: