Australia Faces ‘Steep’ Debt Rise Without Budget Cuts, OECD Says

Australia’s national debt will “rise rapidly” over coming years unless the Labor government is prepared to overhaul a sclerotic tax system to boost revenue or cut spending to reflect its more constrained means, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said.

In its annual assessment of the economy, the OECD warned that with federal and state budgets projected to be in the red for years and an aging population and prospects of an expensive climate transition, there needs to be a “greater sense of urgency” about improving Australia’s public finances.