Very much reeks of vote buying. “Hey Australia, look at all this free money we are passing on to you.”
I mean, thanks I guess, but I am already getting a massive benefit from the stage 3 tax cuts. Why not take that $3.5 BILLION and invest it in something that will keep energy prices down for ever, rather than band-aid over it for 12 months. By all means, give the rebate to low income earners and those in real need of it, but people who are not struggling in the slightest should not be getting the rebate.
I guess the government have to play to the lowest common denominator in the voting base. Not all Australians understand that this money isn’t actually free and it will cost us in the long run (every subsequent budget for the next decade is predicted to be in deficit rather than surplus).