Taxpayers and students are the big winners from Jim Chalmers’s fourth budget, while supermarkets and some bosses have come up short.
FEDERAL BUDGET WINNERS AND LOSERS
WINNERS
* Taxpayers: All taxpayers will get tax cuts in July 2026 and July 2027, taking the average total to an extra $50 a week after this year’s tax cuts are included
* University students: Students with a HECS debt will have 20 per cent of their loan cut, wiping $16 billion from all balances
* First-home buyers: The Help to Buy equity scheme, which allows buyers to purchase a home with a lower deposit, will have caps expanded to make it more accessible
* Workers looking to change jobs: Employees earning less than $175,000 won’t be subjected to non-compete clauses
* Aged care staff: $2.6 billion is set aside in the budget for a pay rise for aged care nurses
* Parents: Mums and dads with kids in childcare will save more than $4000 in fees each year as the government aims to set up universal access
* Beer drinkers: The government will pause indexation of the excise of draught beer for two years from August
LOSERS:
* Supermarkets: The consumer watchdog will get $38.8 million to crack down on misleading and deceptive practices by major retailers
* Consulting firms: The government will reduce spending on consulting and labour hire firms by more than more than $700 million over the next four years
* Business owners: Bosses won’t be able to slap non-compete clauses on employees leaving the workplace as part of a government crackdown
* Foreign property buyers: Foreign buyers will be banned for two years from purchasing existing homes in Australia, which will kick in from April
* Illegal tobacco traders: More than $156 million will be spent from July to elevate a crack down on the illegal tobacco trade
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