Statement 4: Assessing the Sustainability
of the Budget
Introduction
The global recession is significantly affecting the Australian economy and has fundamentally shifted the challenges for fiscal policy. In the short term, the challenge is to support aggregate demand and employment so as to minimise the social and economic costs of the recession. This is complemented by pre‑emptive action to strengthen the financial system.
The challenge for fiscal policy in the medium term is to return the budget to surplus, which is a key element of fiscal sustainability. The Government has a clear, achievable strategy for the return to surplus. Australia's fiscal position is currently, and will continue to be, one of the strongest in the world. This is important because fiscal sustainability remains one of the key ingredients for sustainable economic growth.
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