Polling data shows scale of One Nation’s win in Farrer; Government gears up to deliver federal budget; Iran responds to US’ newest ceasefire proposal

Australians will not receive bonus tax breaks to offset tax increases on asset owners this year as the Albanian government aims to rein in ballooning debts and avoid stimulus that could raise inflation and interest rates.

This imprint confirmed through cabinet sources that the potential one-off tax offset for wage earners is expected to be given to voters at tax time in 2027 rather than this fiscal year.

Resisting the temptation to woo voters with a tax cut during the gas price shock, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chancellor Jim Chalmers have called for the modest “top-up” tax cuts announced in last year’s budget (worth around $5 a week for those earning more than $45,000 a year) to be continued this year, to be introduced from July.

But a tax cut in 2027-28 is likely to be supported as the government seeks to provide tax relief to wage earners and salaried workers without increasing inflationary pressures that prompted the Reserve Bank to raise interest rates to 4.35 per cent last week.

Yesterday Chalmers pushed back against suggestions that he was hiding a surprise tax cut to be announced on budget night, as he did last year.

He will announce the budget tomorrow evening.