The Budget 2026 live updates: Jim Chalmers claims no election lies, Albanese says Labor changed its mind

“Their migration targets, they’ve missed every single year, and they’re now saying 2 million migrants in the first two terms of their government, that I think should be a wake-up call for Australians, because, let’s face it, that excessive migration is causing problems with housing,” she told Sky on Wednesday.

“It’s causing problems in our healthcare system. It’s causing problems with our infrastructure, and it’s out of control.”

Budget figures show net overseas migration for this financial year has been revised up to 295,000, from a previous estimate of 260,000.

While migration is forecast to ease in coming years, next year’s intake is still expected to be 20,000 higher than earlier projections, with 245,000 now expected, up from 225,000.

The Coalition is preparing to announce a policy to cut migration numbers as it seeks to win back voters shifting towards One Nation.

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Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ fifth Budget will not lower inflation — one of its stated objectives — and could be followed by more interest rate rises, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s top economists said.

“Overall, the Budget is unlikely to shift the RBA’s near-term view on interest rates, but it does little to help in the fight against inflation,” wrote Luke Yeaman, Belinda Allen and Ashwin Clarke. “As it stands the risk sits with further tightening by the RBA.”

Australia’s largest bank said the Government’s decision to increase the Budget deficit next financial year, “when the fight against inflation will be hardest” by spending an extra $6.5 billion, makes the Budget “neutral-to-mildly expansionary”.

Because inflation is out of control, many economists would like governments to help slow price rises by reducing spending. Tuesday night’s Budget will widen the federal deficit by $3.2 billion through extra spending on hospitals, defence and other priorities, spending a windfall in taxes from higher gas prices.

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Pauline Hanson has labelled Jim Chalmers’ efforts a “Sheriff of Nottingham budget” that takes money away from people who worked hard.

“I’m talking people my age. We were the baby boomers. We didn’t have a lot. We had to go without. We have the second-hand furniture, second-hand clothes… we didn’t go to restaurants, and we didn’t have all this. Then we saved and we invested into wealth to create that wealth,” she said.

“All the government’s doing now is stripping that wealth and handing it to others.

“I see this as nothing but communism taking over and redistributing wealth.”

Asked whether she agreed with the government’s proposition that people who earned their money through wages were being taxed higher than those whose income came from assets, Senator Hanson let Barnaby Joyce answer for her.

He said people who bought capital assets had already been taxed once.

“I can choose to buy a new boat, to go on a trip, to go skiing, to go to the coast, or I can put the money aside so that my children have an easier life. That is my choice,” he said.

A very happy sounding Bill Shorten has told Radio Nation he feels vindicated after last night’s Budget adopted many of the tax measures he took to the 2016 and 2019 elections but lost.

“I think that we were probably ahead of our time, and I do think this is important for the nation,” said the former Labor leader, now University of Canberra vice-chancellor.

He said the fact Labor was now in government, combined with the shift in demographics and attitudes towards capital gains tax and negative gearing since 2019, gives him more confidence that the Government will successfully make the changes now.

“I think the great Australian dream of owning a home is a worthy one, and needs to be, that flame needs to be kept alive, not smothered under a tax system,” he said.

“The core of this whole story is a simple proposition… Why is it that a plumber, a nurse, a journalist, a lawyer, a teacher, a doctor, pay higher rates of tax when they go to work every day than someone who just sits on a pile of assets and just sells them down the track and gets taxpayers’ support in between?”

Sunrise host Nat Barr pointed out to the PM, via a letter from a viewer, that he has built his property portfolio using the benefits of the existing negative gearing conditions pre-Budget, and was now robbing other Australians of the same luxury.

“No, but they can invest in a new build though,’ Mr Albanese responded.

“What they’ll be doing is not just helping to build their own portfolio, they’ll be helping to build homes that other young people will be able to move into and rent and boost supply as well.

“So they’ll be able to do that in exactly the same way. They can even choose the old system of capital gains of a 50 per cent discount if they choose to do so.”

Co-host Michael Usher highlighted that the Australian property market is now hotter and harder than when Mr Albanese got in, adding that many politicians also used the old measures to build wealth.

“That’s the whole point of why we’re making this change. You’ve just said it’s a very different market. That’s the point,’ Mr Albanese said.

“We’re throwing everything at this to make a difference because it has got tougher.

“As time has gone on, it’s got tougher and tougher for young people to enter the housing market, which is why we’re making this change.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he is being “upfront” and Labor changing its mind on CGT and negative gearing, breaking election promises.

“This is a budget of reform and resilience,” Albanese told Sunrise.

“It is making sure that the Australian dream of buying a home isn’t out of reach.”

Mr Albanese said Labor will “own” the decision to change their mind.

“We have changed our position. I am upfront about that, and we will own that,” the Prime Minister said.

“The difference between negatively gearing a new home instead of an existing home… You are investing in Australia as well as your future wealth.

“We have changed our position on property issues because we want 75,000 additional young Australians to access their own home.

“What has changed is that increasingly we realised what we were doing wasn’t enough.

“If you have a negatively geared property, no change to your existing arrangements.

“We are also saying we are not going to sit back and just kick this can down the road again.”

Dr Chalmers said there would soon be a “phasing out” process for investors hoping to continue negative gearing a property.

Anyone who currently has an investment property won’t be affected by the new negative gearing changes.

From today, anyone who buys a home and wants to access negative gearing needs to invest in a new build.

Labor claims the change will push some investors into new builds, boosting supply.

“People who are negatively gearing right now, we respect and recognise those decisions that they have taken already. They can continue to negatively gear that property. At some point, it will become positively geared, and so there will be an element of phasing out,” Dr Chalmers told Sunrise.

“If people want to continue investing in housing, they can negatively gear a new property so that it adds to housing supply.

“What the Budget is really about is recognising that some of the opportunities that people have had in the past, we want to make that more people can do well into the future.“

Treasurer Jim Chalmers is facing the music after breaking election promises in his fifth Federal Budget.

The Albanese Government on Tuesday announced major changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing as Dr Chalmers attempts to force investors into new homes, potentially freeing up homes for younger Australians.

“One of the main motivations for the changes we made, which we understand are contentious changes, is to make it easier for young people,” Dr Chalmers told Sunrise.

“This is about levelling the playing field. The changes we announced last night, we expect it to mean 70,000 new homes.

Asked flat out if he lied at the 2025 election when Labor said there would be no changes to CGT of negative gearing, Dr Chalmers claimed the decision to make a change from the promise came just weeks ago.

“We’ve come to a different view on these policy areas. Too many young people are being locked out of the housing market,” Dr Chalmers said.

“(The change) was decided in the usual way late in the Budget process.”