The budget has become something of a showpiece in recent years. For much of recent economic history, the 1980s in particular but again in the early 2010s, it was about how things were going to get paid for.  More recently, it seems to be less about what is best for the country’s finances and, instead, whether a particular household is better or worse off, in terms of their pay packet. This is a little concerning: instead of moving away from budget day as some sort of Christmas surprise, recent budgets seem to have doubled down on ‘goodies’ to be handed…

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