Coalition budget reply 2025

In their 2025 Budget reply speech, opposition leader Peter Dutton outlined several key measures aimed at addressing Australia's economic challenges and setting the Coalition's agenda ahead of the May 3 federal election.

1. Fuel excise reduction:

The coalition proposed a temporary reduction in the fuel excise by 25 cents per litre for one year, aiming to alleviate the financial burden on Australian motorists. This measure is projected to cost the government $6 billion over the year and is estimated to save motorists $14 per week per car.

2. Gas reservation scheme:

To combat rising energy prices, the Coalition committed to establishing a gas reservation scheme decoupled from global pricing. This policy intends to ensure a dedicated supply of Australian gas for domestic use, thereby reducing wholesale gas prices from $14 to $10 per gigajoule.

It was announced that new investment in gas projects will be accelerated by:

• reinstating a $300 million Strategic Basin Plan and including gas in the Capacity Investment Scheme,
• investing $1 billion into a Critical Gas Infrastructure Fund to increase gas pipeline and storage capacity, and
• putting in place ‘use it or lose it’ stipulations for gas drilling companies so offshore gas fields are not locked up for years.

The details of how the gas plan will work are still to be released.

3. Nuclear power

The Coalition’s commitment to nuclear power was reaffirmed with no additional detail being provided.

4. Public service workforce reduction:

Addressing concerns over government expenditure, plans were announced to reduce the federal public service workforce by 41,000 positions. These positions, according to Dutton, were added under the current Albanese government. The reduction aims to streamline operations and reduce public spending. The Coalition's commitment to fully funding essential services, including health and education was reaffirmed.

5. Repeal of recent tax cuts:

Dutton criticised the government's recent tax cuts, labelling them a "cruel hoax." He argued that the savings of up to $268 in the first year and $536 in the subsequent year were insufficient to address the current cost-of-living crisis. The Coalition proposes to repeal these tax cuts if elected.

6. Housing and migration policy

The Coalition plans to reduce the annual permanent migration intake by 25% over the next two years. While specifics on the distribution of these cuts between skilled and family visas were not detailed, Dutton emphasised the need to prioritise Australian jobs and infrastructure capacity.

To further assist housing availability, the Coalition will:

• ban foreign investors and temporary residents from purchasing existing Australian homes for a period of two years,
• set stricter caps on foreign students to relieve stress on rental markets,
• invest $5 billion in essential infrastructure to get stalled housing projects up and going to create 500,000 new homes, and
• allow first home buyers to access up to $50,000 of their super for a home deposit.

Other measures

The Coalition committed to a target of 400,000 apprentices and trainees in training across Australia. In addition, the Coalition will provide small and medium businesses with $12,000 to support them to put on a new apprentice or trainee in critical skills areas for the first two years of their training.

Two additional measures were announced for small business setting the instant asset write off at $30,000 and providing tax deductible business meal expenses capped at $20,000 per annum per small business.

The Coalition will also offer $400 million funding to support youth mental health and $50 million for food charities like Foodbank, SecondBite and OzHarvest, to expand their services and to include school breakfast programs.

Similar initiatives to the Government’s increased spending on health were also announced.

An additional $3 billion in defence funding for the 4^th squadron of F-35 aircraft was reaffirmed.

The Coalition also plans to abandon Labor's $20 billion Rewiring the Nation Fund, the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund, and $16 billion of production tax credits for critical minerals and green hydrogen.

The Budget reply outlined the measures to give effect to the Coalition's focus on reducing living costs, streamlining government operations, and ensuring sustainable funding for essential services. The upcoming election will provide voters with the opportunity to decide on these proposed policies and the future direction of Australia's governance.