To Begin Again
FROM GROK: The 2026 Federal Budget, handed down by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on May 12, continues to dominate Australian politics with intense and sustained backlash two weeks later. The centrepiece reforms — restricting negative gearing for new investors and slashing the capital gains tax discount — have sparked fury for breaking explicit Labor election promises not to touch these investor perks. Critics, including the Coalition, business groups, mum-and-dad investors, and commentators like Peta Credlin, describe it as a "war on aspiration," a betrayal that punishes those trying to get ahead and risks reducing housing supply and investment. Polls reflect the damage: a Newspoll showed 60% of voters viewing the changes as the "wrong direction" or ineffective, with Labor defending the measures as essential for intergenerational equity and first-home buyers while accusing opponents of protecting vested interests. In the last 24 hours, the controversy has simmered with o...