News Analysis: Australia's "responsible" federal budget unlikely to lose government voters

The Australian government's 2017-18 federal budget, handed down by Treasurer Scott Morrison Tuesday night, was sold as being "responsible" and one which brings "better days ahead", and the measures are unlikely to lose the government votes with the everyday Australian.

A 6.2 billion AU dollar (4.56 billion U.S. dollar) levy on the big banks, new taxes aimed at foreign investors who purchase Australian property and tax breaks for both small businesses and first-home buyers were the highlights of Morrison's address to Parliament overnight, in a package Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull described as "fair on every level".

Senior political commentators in Canberra have described it as a "Labor Lite" budget --that is, one which could have been handed down by the opposition Labor Party -- saying it was not out of the realm of possibility that the Labor party would have introduced similar measures.

In an attempt to lower the rising cost of living while encouraging economic growth, the coalition government has flagged new taxes for multinational companies, the big banks and foreign investors, while it has also invested in "good debt" -- major infrastructure projects which create "jobs and growth" and stimulate the economy.

Political analyst Laurie Oakes, who has covered 48 federal budgets for the Nine Network, said the budget could have been handed down by a Labor government, but said it "does what the government needs to do" to "lift it out of the electoral doldrums".

"The tone of the budget, if not quite warm and cuddly, was certainly optimistic with plenty of assurances to the punters that the government understands (everyday Australian) problems," Oakes told the Nine Network.

"It's unlikely the government will lose votes whacking a tax on big banks, although the banks will certainly squeal, and parts of the (government's) conservative base won't like these tax measures, meaning its political effectiveness depends a great deal on them sucking it up and keeping their mouths shut."

Meanwhile Deloitte Access Economics' Chris Richardson said there was some "excellent politics" within the coalition's budget, but was sceptical about the government's promise to return the budget, which is currently at 29.4 billion AU dollars (21.6 billion U.S. dollars) to surplus by 2021.

"The question mark is still the timeline of returning to surplus, I still think there's some baked-in optimism there," he said.

Both Labor and the Greens have applauded the government's move to tax the big banks 6.2 billion AU dollars over the next four years, but CEO of the Australian Bankers' Association Anna Bligh said the levy would trickle down to affect everyday Australians.

"This is just a big money grab to fill a budget hole for the government and they've imposed it on the sector of the economy which they believe is a politically and easy target," Bligh told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Wednesday.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten also said an increase in the nation's healthcare levy was a kick in the teeth to ordinary Australians which Labor would have avoided.

Taxpayers are likely to be most affected by the half a percentage point increase on the healthcare levy in order to pay for the controversial National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). He said that Labor would not have given tax breaks to the upper class and large companies and funded the NDIS off the back of big business tax increases.

Elsewhere, the scientific research sector lamented a lack of funding, while health experts said the government's commitment to public healthcare was "essential". Endit