The Voice is about recognition, listening and making sure the billions of dollars we invest in programs are getting value for money and improving lives.  

The recent debate about full employment and how we define it has come at an important and welcome time.

We know these are difficult times for many Australians.

The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank in the US and the takeover of Credit Suisse has sent waves through global financial markets over the past month but Australian banks are well‑capitalised, well‑regulated and well‑placed to deal with this new source of volatility in the global economy.

The Budget that we’ll hand down in less than 40 days is being developed in a complex environment here at home and in the global economy more broadly.

Australians don’t need to be told there’s a cost-of-living challenge in the economy right now.

This week we saw the independent Reserve Bank raise interest rates by 25 basis points to 3.35 per cent. It continued the cycle of increases that began before the election, following the highest quarter for inflation in 2022 – the March quarter. The strong expectation of the market was for another increase and homeowners were expecting it as well. But knowing it’s coming doesn’t make it any easier to handle for millions of Australians already feeling the pinch.

In late October, just before the Albanese government’s first Budget, a journalist I’ve known for two decades messaged me a quote from one of the earliest Greek philosophers, Heraclitus: “No man ever steps in the same river twice. For it’s not the same river, and he’s not the same man.”

As Treasurer, I spend a lot of time in the boardrooms of Australia with corporate leaders and investors who share my optimism about the future of our economy and our country – even as we confront together what many expect to be a challenging year around the world.

West Australians know, as I do, that mining matters. It matters for the strength of our economy, the position of the budget, for the successful transition of our energy market, and for the jobs of the future. And as fresh analysis from the Commonwealth Treasury makes clear, mining matters for economic and social mobility too.