Treasurer Jim Chalmers has just announced the 2024 Federal Budget, with the cost of living at the forefront.

“This is a budget for the here and now, and it’s a budget for the decades to come,” Treasurer Chalmers said before handing the budget down.

“It’s a responsible budget that helps people under pressure today, and invests in the promise and potential of the more prosperous future that we can make together.”

From July 1, there will be $3.5 billion dollars in new energy bill relief for everyone, with every Australian to receive an energy rebate of $300 and one million small businesses “will get a little bit more”.

$3 million will be provided for cheaper medicines and community pharmacies that distribute them, freezing the maximum cost of PBS prescriptions, so this year and next year, no one will pay more than $31.60.

PBS prescriptions for pensioners will be frozen for five years, so no pensioner or concession card holder will pay more than $7.70 for the medicine that they need.

$1.9 billion dollars will be provided to increase the maximum rates of commonwealth rent assistance by a further 10 per cent, with the first back to back commonwealth rent increase in over 30 years.

The treasurer claimed from this July, the aim is to build 1.2 million over five years, which he said is “ambitious but achievable”.

An additional $1.9 billion in loans will be spent to help build 40,000 social and affordable homes.

Indexation of student loans will be capped, back dating it to the middle of 2023, which will wipe $3 billion of student debt for over 3 million Australians, and save the average person $1,200.

The budget delivered back to back surpluses for the first time in 20 years.