Labor’s Debt ‘Robbing the Future’: O’Brien Says, yet to Offer Detail on Future Plan

Despite accusing the government of reckless spending, the Coalition refused to specify savings, tax offsets or energy price impacts.

Australia's Deputy Leader of the Opposition Ted O'Brien (R) speaks at a press conference with Leader of the Opposition Sussan Ley at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia on May 13, 2025. Saeed Khan/AFP via Getty Images

CANBERRA, Australia—Shadow Federal Treasurer Tim O’Brien has criticised Labor’s economic management, saying that the Albanese government had blown a record tax windfall while driving up spending.

Speaking at the National Press Club on Nov. 26, O’Brien said record tax receipts had created “rivers of gold” for the Treasury, yet the budget was still heading for a decade of deficits.