A triple ‘F’ rating for this federal budget

The treasurer may claim to be fighting inflation by paying us not to notice the increase in our electricity bills, but until he gets spending and debt going in opposite directions, it is a con.

Can we grow the economic pie? unlikely

There is a relatively painless way to get out of this predicament, but that is where "flaccid" comes into play. That painless way is to grow the economy faster than expenditure. It's how Robert Menzies paid off the massive debt of WWII.

That requires an economy that is tough and resilient, not one where workers think the government can sort everything out for them and all they have to do is cash the cheques.

Yet we've gone in the other direction with the government increasingly interfering and directing.

We have an industrial relations system that has been pushed back to the 50s.

Our power prices are inexorably increasing as hobby forms of energy like wind and solar are tortured to provide grid-scale supply.

The government is interfering in the price setting system, and regulations are being used to strangle developments.

The Fair Work Commission, under government pressure, is increasing wages without concern for productivity.

This is not a growth economy, it is a redistributive economy, and those are built on the presumption that you can't "grow the pie."

Won't be fooled again?

And that brings us to foolish.

I've seen a few budgets, and the applause from the treasurer's colleagues seemed muted.

I don't think the government is foolish enough to believe that this budget can deliver on any of the promises it makes, so they are unenthusiastic.