In last nights debate, Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers criticised the Coalition’s planned cuts while Opposition Treasurer Angus Taylor warned of another three years of Labor’s “overspending”.
During the clash hosted by Sky News over plans for Australia’s economy, Chalmers shared the Labor party’s plans to ease cost of living, increase wage growth and create more jobs for Australians.
“Our economic plan is about helping with the cost of living, cutting taxes and making the Australian economy more resilient in uncertain times” he said.
Taylor hit back, asking Australians who they “trust to manage the economy”. The opposition leader claimed Australians are “worse off” than they were three years ago at the beginning of Labor’s electoral term.
US President Donald Trump’s latest tariff announcements created a talking point for the pair, although both claimed their respective parties would stand up to Trump’s administration.
Chalmers argued that the Labor party are doing enough to protect the country from a potentially higher tariff rate and said “we’ve got a prime minister standing up for and speaking up for Australia”.
Chalmers also compared the Opposition’s plan to cut spending to Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), calling them “DOGE sycophants”. The treasurer emphasised that Australian’s will be “worse off” under Liberal’s plans for “American-style cuts and policies”.
Taylor opposed Chalmers claims, stating the Coalition were able to stand up to Trump in their previous governing term.
Taylor continued to argue that Labor’s overspending will be harmful to Australians with the latest budget projecting $179 billion in deficits across the next five years. The opposition treasurer rang home his party’s plans to decrease fuel prices by 25c per litre, immediately after elected.
“We’ve been laying out our positive plan to get this country back on track, to beat inflation by cutting waste and slashing red tape, to boost growth, by backing business and backing investment in this country.”
Photo: from Daniel Mortan-Jones found HERE and used under a Creative Commons license. This image has not been modified.
