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NationalNSW

This was published 8 years ago

Live: NSW budget 2017-18 has surprising 'soul'

James Robertson
Updated ,first published

Summary

  • A surplus of $4.5 billion this financial year, a river of income the government has described as the "envy of the western world".
  • A $100 rebate for active school kids the Treasurer described as the "soul" of the budget
  • Infrastructure projects - many pre-announced - to the value of nearly 125 Harbour Bridges, including a $700 million revamp of the Prince of Wales Hospital at Randwick.
  • Criticism that the rookie Treasurer's first budget, while flash with cash, is silent on meaningful tax reform.

Bon voyage

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And with that we shall leave behind our coverage of the state budget for today.

There'll be no shortage of fiscal and political entrails to analyse over the next two days, though, we're sure.

Meantime, I'll leave you with the two must-read overviews of the day on which the government made it rain surpluses to the value of some $12-billion.

State political editor Sean Nicholls' latest on the days events is here while our economics writer Matt Wade wonders whether Treasurer Dominic Perrottet really ought to be so enthusiastically performing his victory lap.

One to watch

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It's hard to think of a more heavily politicised issue at the moment than school funding, especially funding of independent and Catholic schools.

So this media release from the Catholic Education Commission NSW is interesting.

They're getting an above-inflation increase in funding in today's budget and are hailing a 20 per cent boost to capital funding.

"We are very grateful for the increase," said Brian Croke from the CEC.

Let's see what the public system representatives say about this.

Three Sydneys

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In the Treasurer's speech to parliament today, apropos of the budget's focus on infrastructure in Sydney's west, he mentioned an interesting idea. Not new necessarily, but interesting.

"The map of our State is being redrawn before our very eyes," he said. "Greater Sydney is evolving into a global metropolis of three separate cities - Sydney, Parramatta and the Western Sydney Airport."

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Prince of Wales Part II

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We brought you earlier a question about the government's new "centrepiece" redevelopment of the Prince of Wales Hospital at Randwick.

In a budget that has largely trickled out through the media over weeks, it was a rare new announcement and the "first in 20 years". Only problem is we recalled another announcement, also the first in 20 years, announced back at the last election.

The Department of Health has gotten back to us and a spokeswoman says they were merely upping their vision, not reheating old news:

"We today announced an additional $220 million to help realise the vision for the Randwick Campus Reconfiguration and Expansion Stage 1 bringing the total investment to $720 million."

Still, not exactly a centrepiece in a $23-billion health budget, if you ask me.

Sydney must be accessible to all: housing criticism

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The Committee for Sydney, a think tank with members from major corporations, the arts and sports organisations, has given its verdict on the budget.

While praising the government's economic management, infrastructure investment and western Sydney focus, they reckon more could have been done on affordable housing.

Committee Chief Executive, Dr Tim Williams said:

"Most Treasurers would give their eye teeth for a budget that both spends in record amounts whilst maintaining a surplus.

"However, a growing city must be accessible to all. The Government rightly recognises that rising housing costs are an ongoing challenge for Sydneysiders and whilst we support greater help for first-time buyers, there is little evidence that removing stamp duty or introducing a first-time buyer's grant will bring downward pressure on house process".

Surely not?

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Today's $700-million upgrade of the Prince of Wales Hospital at Randwick, the Treasurer told us, was the "centrepiece" of the budget's health spending announcements and was even singled out in the Treasurer's speech to parliament.

"The $720 million funding investment will deliver the first major upgrade of the Prince of Wales Hospital in 20 years," the press release accompanying the announcement reads.

Only, that sounds awfully familiar.

Two years ago, during the last state election, the state government announced an upgrade of the same hospital, one of more than 50 it announced during a health heavy campaign.

This time it was a $500 million upgrade.

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Budget an "orgy of propaganda": Foley

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Opposition Leader Luke Foley has held forth on today's budget. No prizes for guessing the tenor of his comments, which suggest that a government sitting on a pile of cash this big isn't really getting moving fast enough.

"We've all been deceived over the last fortnight about spending on hospitals.

"This has been an orgy of propaganda for the past week or two to boost their political fortunes.

"It's a cruel hoax. When you look at the budget papers today the hospitals that the Premier has run around for the past fortnight promising will be upgraded courtesy of this budget, we learn nothing will be delivered until the mid-2020s.

"So an upgrade of Concord Hospital? Not til 2023. Upgrade of Nepean and Campbelltown hospitals? Not til 2024. Upgrade of Prince of Wales and Tweed hospitals, not til 2025.

"Yet they've run around for the last fortnight promising billions on upgrading our hospitals.

"It's a cruel hoax."

$4-billion enrollment boom

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A "once-in-a-generation" spike in enrolments in NSW schools will see the state government spend $4.2 billion over four years on new and upgraded schools, including an extra $11 million on building grants to help private schools cope with ballooning student numbers.

The government will also spend $747 million over the next four years on the maintenance backlog in the state's schools, including $411 million in the next financial year, and will employ 1000 more teachers, writes the Herald's education editor, Alexandra Smith.

The pokie state

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Journalist/wag/shareholder activist cum gambling critic Stephen Mayne notes the state government is increasingly dependent on revenue from pokies.

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The Treasurer was asked about this very issue this morning and he said problem gambling was an issue the government would "continue to look at".

Revenue from lotteries and lotto, by contrast, is forecast to fall from this year to next from $362 million to $346 million. Quelle dommage.

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NSW leads most of the world

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Treasurer Dominic Perrottet may have seemed a little grandiose when he described the financial position of his government as the envy of the "western world".

But Infrastructure Partnerships Australia - a think-tank launched by two Labor Premiers but which represents the industry - is similarly glowing.

"NSW leads the entire country and most of the world on infrastructure," said Chief Executive Brendan Lyon. "This is a real 'infrastructure budget' because it puts hard dollars behind actual transport, health and education projects."

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