PETER VAN ONSELEN: Why Jim Chalmers’ $300 energy rebate is WAY worse than you think

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has benefited from all sides with his $300 energy rebate, as he should.

Labor says that from July this year ‘more than 10 million households will receive a total rebate of $300’, but some of the country’s wealthiest property owners, including many politicians, will receive much more than that.

Because the rebate is tied to households and not families, anyone who owns multiple properties, whether vacant or rented on a short-term basis, will receive an additional $300 rebate for each property they own, regardless of their financial situation. the one they receive for their main residence.

Daily Mail Australia has crunched the numbers and more than 4,000 Australians worth an estimated $100 million or more will receive the $300 rebate, which the Albanian government is describing as a ‘cost of living’ measure .

Most of them own multiple properties, which means they will receive multiple discounts. A mega-rich Australian who owns ten lifestyle properties will receive $3,000, compared to a struggling single-income family who will receive just $300.

The losers: Struggling Australians will only receive a one-off $300 energy rebate

On Budget Evening, presenter Sarah Ferguson addressed this point at 7.30 during her interview with Chalmers. He replied: ‘I think cost of living pressures go up and down the income scale.’

But the generosity for the privileged doesn’t stop there. More than two-thirds of politicians own multiple properties, including a second home in Canberra, guaranteeing them the chance to double the $300 rebate.

And all these MPs who don’t live in Canberra receive hundreds of dollars a day in benefits while in the capital to help fund these properties and lifestyles.

That is in addition to their salaries, which range from $200,000 to more than $600,000 in the case of the prime minister.

If the crossbench proposal that the energy rebate be means-tested were passed by the government, none of these politicians would receive the taxpayer subsidy.

Each member of the government’s finance team owns multiple properties, including apartments in Canberra. Albanese, Chalmers and assistant treasurer Stephen Jones all list a residence in Canberra on their register of financial interests. Chalmers and Jones receive parliamentary privileges to assist with any costs associated with their properties.

Anthony Albanese and fiancée Jodie Haydon outside his home in Marrickville.

Canberra-based Finance Minister Katy Gallagher has added a ‘holiday home’ in the NSW coastal town of Tomakin to her property portfolio after winning the 2022 election. Chalmers’ announcement grants her an additional $300 energy rebate on top of the rebate she receives for her primary residence in Canberra.

In addition to each member of the government’s financial team enjoying multiple cost-of-living reductions, each member of the government’s leadership team is blessed in the same way.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles has several properties listed on his register of financial interests, including a residence in Canberra.

Senate Majority Leader Penny Wong has several properties listed as residences, as does Deputy Senate Majority Leader Don Farrell, one of which includes a vineyard.

Tony Burke, manager of government affairs in the House of Representatives, owns six properties, including a second home in Canberra, on which he gets a second rebate of $300. But unfortunately for him, it appears he won’t be able to get the full $1,800 rebate for the six properties as some of them appear to be long-term rentals.

The people who rent these properties get the $300 rebate, and this is almost certainly the only rebate they will receive.

The Prime Minister has a property in Canberra that is still listed as a ‘residential’ home, despite now living at The Lodge. It should qualify for the $300 rebate. If Albo can get his nagging tenant out of the Dulwich Hill property he plans to sell before July 1, he would also save another $300 in living expenses for that property have to earn.

All politicians and other Australians earning more than $190,000 will already get a $4,500 income tax cut in July – a benefit the Treasurer has described as the “foundation stone” of his budget.

That’s in addition to the $300 cost-of-living reduction, perhaps multiplied by the number of properties they own.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers, pictured on Budget Night, has drawn criticism for the $300 energy rebate

Experts say the way the discount is designed will contribute to the cycle of high inflation and is a cynical attempt by the Albanian government to briefly halt the rise in inflation through a one-off impact on the consumer price index. They also say this won’t stop the Reserve Bank of Australia from raising interest rates if necessary.

Economics professor Steven Hamilton points out that the cut “leaves higher inflation that must be neutralized with higher interest rates.”

The opposition has also joined in on this point, claiming the move is purely political, according to shadow finance spokeswoman Jane Hume.

The Albanian government claims that giving the discount to everyone is the simplest and easiest way to get the aid out as quickly as possible.

But one energy supplier told Daily Mail Australia they can provide the rebate to customers regardless of how the government designs it – whether it is means-tested or not.

While Opposition Leader Peter Dutton indicated in his budget response speech that the Coalition would not stand in the way of the rebate as announced, Daily Mail Australia understands he would be in favor of testing it, or limiting it to a single payment of $ 300 per family, instead of allowing multiple payments to owners of multiple properties, if the government makes such changes.

Welfare groups have also pointed out that only Australians with a home to live in will receive assistance. Many more people are now living in tough conditions than in the past due to pressures on the cost of living and the recognized housing crisis, a fact supported by Salvation Army research published today.

And there was no increase in the Newstart benefit in the budget, a community cohort that Labor claims to represent, despite the difficulties posed by the cost of living crisis.