Australia budget to dole out energy bill relief as general election looms

SYDNEY - Australias government said on Sunday that a federal budget this week would include an A$1.8 billion extension to a scheme to reduce energy bills, ahead of what is expected to be a closely-fought general election due by May.

Prime Minister Anthony Albaneses centre-left Labor government has already handed out A$3.5 billion in energy bill relief in a bid to tackle inflation, as it grapples with rising living costs in the nation of around 27 million.

On Sunday, ahead of handing down on Tuesday its final budget before the election, Albanese said Australian households and around one million small businesses would get another A$150 in rebates automatically applied to their electricity bills in quarterly instalments.

Treasury estimates this will directly reduce headline inflation by around half of a percentage point in 2025, Albanese said in a statement, which costed the measure at A$1.8 billion.

The governments main political opposition, the conservative Liberal-National coalition, said it would not oppose the schemes extension, after the countrys energy regulator last week warned that power prices in some eastern regions could surge by nearly 9% from July.

As announced on Saturday, the budget will also expand a scheme to help would-be home buyers get on the property ladder, as housing, the largest contributor to the rising cost of living in Australia, shapes up as a key election issue.

The budget pledges come after a widely-watched poll in February showed most Australian voters wanted the Labor government out of office. In the poll, Albaneses approval rating hit its lowest point since he was elected to office in May 2022.

The government, which has not yet officially called the election, is working to lift support via a slew of measures aimed at pleasing families and businesses grappling with high living costs.

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