‘Volatile times’: PM unveils $10bn fuel plan as Labor risks RBA clash
The government has unveiled a $10 billion fuel support package as Treasurer Jim Chalmers dismisses spending warnings from the Reserve Bank.
Just one day after Reserve Bank of Australia governor Michelle Bullock raised explicit concerns about government spending pushing up inflation, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has unveiled fresh plans to spend another $10 billion.
But the off budget plan to expand Australia’s onshore fuel reserves to 50 days has largely been welcomed by economists as a necessary step to combat the global oil crisis, while the Opposition suggested it does not go far enough.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, less than a week out from a budget he has described as the most important of his tenure as prime minister, Albanese insisted Australia had “done much better than was anticipated” as US President Donald Trump’s war on Iran war rattles global oil supplies.
But he conceded Australia remained exposed to the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a third of the world’s oil supply flows, after mixed messages over Washington’s long-term plans in the region.
