The debt debate: How concerned should we be about the public purse?
"Debt" and "deficit" are back in the headlines as the federal election looms. Economists speaking to Capital Brief say the real story is complex.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has faced mounting criticism in the mainstream media over the past few months about his handling of federal finances.
While inflation and government spending remain key areas of debate, attention has increasingly turned to Australia’s rising national debt. How concerned should we really be?
“It’s not alarming,” independent economist Chris Richardson, who has analysed Australia’s budgets for more than a quarter of a century, tells Capital Brief.
“Economic conditions, particularly prices for what we sell to the world, have delivered truckloads of money to the tax man, so our debt is low by world standards.”
