(Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Scott Morrison defended his government’s goal of returning the budget to surplus, saying Australia’s economy faced headwinds for years to come.
In an interview with ABC radio Thursday morning, Morrison was questioned whether it was worth returning the budget to the black at the cost of economic growth.
Balancing the books was “critically important,” said Morrison, whose government this week announced fast-tracked infrastructure spending to provide stimulus, yet has resisted calls to bring forward additional income tax cuts.
“We are facing headwinds not just now but for years to come,” he said. “You do not erode your financial resources at a time like this.”
Australia to Fast-Track $2.6 Billion of Infrastructure Projects
Morrison has been loathe to provide stimulus that may jeopardize a promised return to surplus this fiscal year, even after the central bank urged his government to help facilitate spending on major projects.
Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe has called for the government to tap record-low borrowing costs to ramp up investment in roads, railways and bridges to support economic growth and employment as the central bank’s conventional interest-rate ammunition comes to an end.
