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SNAPSHOT: Budget framework needed
January 25, 2012
Anglicare believes Tasmania needs a clear framework to guide the cuts made to state budget expenditure.
In its submission on the State Budget 2012-2013, Anglicare said that it was important that savings over the next three years be achieved in a way that balanced fiscal responsibility with community sustainability.
It called for the government’s Social Inclusion Unit to be commissioned to map the impact of cuts on at-risk groups of people and communities.
“Cuts to the budget come at a big cost to the community, particularly in the form of fewer services,” said the submission. “The critical questions are what essential outcomes do we want for Tasmania, and what services are essential to achieving those outcomes?”
The submission said that since June 2011 information about budget cuts had been disseminated to the public by media release. It said the major portfolios had not systematically informed the community of their savings strategies. The submission said savings were happening agency by agency, with no collaboration about their wider impact. “This means that the cumulative effect on vulnerable members of the community can be high,” it said.
Anglicare called for principles to be developed to guide budget decision-making. In 2009, the South Australian Government formed a Sustainable Budget Commission of Inquiry which made a series of recommendations to guide the down-sizing of that state’s budget. Anglicare said this type of framework of principles and processes could be used to prioritise expenditure.
Criteria could include:
- Consideration of the effect on social inclusion outcomes;
- Ensuring the sustainability of essential government programs;
- Investing in social safety net programs; and
- Environmental sustainability.
The Anglicare submission recommended investment in government programs designed to prevent crisis – including early intervention strategies and those that addressed housing costs, maintained essential services and ensured food was accessible and affordable.
A full copy of the submission can be viewed here