It’s really hard – I know you were talking about a past budget, but sometimes it seems they all favor better off families and individuals.

it really annoys me – I am not rich by any means, but people that are earning a good wage pay higher tax, pay tax on investments, pay tax on businesses, etc… It really annoys me.

Also, I thought GST was supposed to be the only tax. Why do we pay so bloody much stamp duty then> it is terribly unfair

Anything involving politics and politicians I find hard to digest. Don’t worry, I’m sure the pollys will have changed it all in a few months, that’s what they’re known for….backtracking on promises and telling lies

I barely took any notice of it. Doesn’t affect me directly and the pollies will do as they please anyway

Unfortunately there just isn’t enough money to go around. We need to focus on industry in Australia. While we continue sending money and jobs overseas we will continue to suffer.

I always find the budget hard to digest!

The whole budget was horrible, how people survive time will tell, I know we will have to tighten the belt and hubbys pay only goes so far. I think the pensioners will have a hard time coping

I also think they hit the wrong people and is unfair and I seen some put something about a $950 hand out well I don’t know who got that but we have nothing like that and they are going to make that you struggle very much to live we lost money last pension which was very much missed and we also are rural and it is things like we get no rain we can not just turn on the tap and know it always there we are living aware of every toilet flush ect and as we are rural we have 3 pumps that takes power to take the water when you flush to make the water come out the tap to take you water from a shower and than to buy water it is $175 last time we got a truck full which is only half our tank not a full take. Petrol to get to the doctors that we have to go every 3 weeks just for test and injections and thing with out getting sick with something. I don’t know what people think you get on a pension once the kids are gone my Grand kids that was here are gone now and they are from a girl we took in we she was thrown out as a kid at school and no we did not get money for her as her parents kept getting it as they had to change it and never did. We worked until an accident we did not plan people just tighten your belt well it only tightens so far than it food this pay or power looks like power wins. Yes we own our home so we can not just move or get rent assistants or any thing like that but we have our own repairs and rates and bill like every one else just alot of medication and alike. I have never had a baby bonus or any other hand out. Every flood we have coped as the bigger property put a big dam here after being 15 years than and changed the water course…..people think we just sit back on our backside and are reaping rewards no we are not and I don’t care any more if people want to throw at this that we live the lucky country….well sorry but it won’t to much longer and we will take up a park bench if we get any more taken of us. Last time I did my washing I had to take it when we had to go into the city and do it at Mum’s as we are 2 rings away from no water and not the money to buy it so yes I don’t feel that lucky at the moment. I shall shut up now before start a riot. I have just had enough thrown at me and I am balancing on an edge right at this moment …..

The budget is going to affect everyone. The hike in fuel excise is going to mean the price of everything will go up because of transport costs. I know something definitely needed to be done, they can’t just keep giving out handouts, like the baby bonus. They definitely shouldn’t be cutting the pension, they are struggling as it is. As far as the Uni fees, that’s a joke, only the wealthy will be able to afford it. We have a daughter who has just started a five year degree, and we live on a rural property, so we are struggling enough with all the living away from home expenses, without extra. Of course, she can’t apply for any centrelink payments because of our assets. What a joke, it’s not money in the bank it’s the land we farm and the machinery we farm it with. They can’t keep hitting the middle income earners either, they are the ones that don’t get the handouts, don’t get any rebates, just get hit with more taxes. Sorry I’m ranting, I could go on forever

I actually didn’t think the budget was that bad. Yes, some of us will lose some $$ from centrelink and some of us will pay an extra few $$ in tax but we did all enjoy those handouts a couple of years ago of $950 plus for most families. If we hadn’t of had those handouts we might not be having to pay it back now.

I think it’s very unfair to families, pensioners & sick people.
And to cut funding from schools & hospitals? I think they’re the places that need the funds

Yes, the budget has definitely hit everybody very hard. I think that we will have to try our best to pay our bills, educate our kids, put food on the table and maybe even sometimes, have a little cash left over for special extras. We will definitely have to ‘tighten our belts’.

Just take in the budget as it happens, families will be hit hard but can only keep going anyway we can, Just a shame the high income earners weren’t hit as hard us.

I’m feeling a lot of anger I have 4 kids and my husband and I don’t work due to my husband having a car accident many years ago and I’m a stay at home mum looking after my kids. It’s very hard as we struggle now trying to pay rent, bills, food, school fees and child care fees and it hurts me that I can’t afford to get my children things they want or even myself because bills and rent comes first, I’m really angry at Abbott and if his budget passes a lot of families like myself are going to panic and I think lose control.

Kelly I could agree more with what you had to say. It was only ever a false economy with labour giving handouts left right and centre. The only thing I liked was that they actually did say sorry to indigenous Australia. I believe charity begins in the home to coin a phrase I was taught growing up. I will no doubt be branded a racist for saying this but I believe we were spending too much in foreign aid, and borrowing to do so. When Howard left, he left us with a surplus that Labour quickly converted to a massive deficit. I think the budget has been largely misunderstood as well and sensationalised too.

I know many of you will say I’m wrong but I think the budget had to be hard everyone is so used to labour giving hand outs every year and now it’s had to stop we can just not afford it anymore.
I just don’t agree that people who earn really good money should get hit with a extra tax on top of the extra tax they already pay.
Just because they did well at school or even worked really hard to get the job they have why should it be just them that gets taxed so much.
Sorry I could go on forever I think everyone should be made to cut back and stop with all the government hand outs.

life just gets harder, we just need to save more and spend on what we need

Coppin85 and Mrs Bucket I thought I was going to be the only person who commented in the same direction as you both did. There is only one bucket of money and the outrageous historical and typical spending of the Labor government had to recouped somehow. At the moment we are paying billions of dollars in interest alone from the loans that Labor took out. I would rather go without now for the future of the generations to come, so that hopefully a more sensible Liberal goverenment can bring things back to order. I’m by no means a wealthy person either just to clarify. It worries me how short sited Australian people would be if they voted the Liberal government out once again because they are prepared to govern at the risk of popular opinion and in the best interests of the country as a whole.

The payouts from the past were never good in the long term

I feel the same. With first child just starting uni and second looking to start in two years, it just seems so difficult to hope for a good education that won’t leave them in debt for a very long time. Don’t know how they will ever be able to save for a deposit for a house.