REMEMBER WHEN

GOLD COAST BULLETIN Wednesday, May 13, 1998

IT’S Federal budget day as the Coalition prepares to hand down its fourth budget of the Turnbull/Abbott Government.

Back in 1998, Australia’s elderly and the health sector were winners from the Coalition government’s third budget as first-term Prime Minister John Howard and his Treasurer Peter Costello made their re-election pitch.

The Budget boasted a $2.7 billion surplus but there were warnings of looming problems in protecting the nation from the economic firestorm then sweeping Asia.

Mr Costello handed down the pre-election Budget which sought to curb voter anger at the harsh spending cuts over the previous two years while holding out the promise of big personal tax cuts.

He said the $2.7 billion surplus, the first since 1990, fulfilled the promise to get the nation’s books back in the black in its first term.

In a budget with few spending surprises, Mr Costello announced that an estimated 220,000 self-funded retirees would be entitled to benefits under the Commonwealth’s Seniors Health Card scheme.

The measure, to take effect from January 1, 1999, was to allow self-funded retirees access to discounted pharmaceutical in the same way as people on an elderly pension.

Five months later the Howard government went to the polls and were narrowly re-elected.

The Budget remained in surplus through the remaining Howard years through 2007 and the first year of the Rudd government before being obliterated in the global financial crisis.