Federal Budget 2022: South West to feel benefits through fuel excise cut, road funding and one-off payments

South West residents will benefit from reduced petrol costs, regional road upgrades, one-off payments and tax offsets through the Federal Government’s 2022/23 budget, handed down by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg. $8.6 billion in measures to help ease cost-of-living pressures and provide petrol price relief were among the key focuses of Mr Frydenberg’s fourth budget. The South West’s biggest ever infrastructure project, the Bunbury Outer Ring Road, also scored an additional $320 million for Stages 2 and 3 of the project. This is in addition to the $140 million earmarked for regional road safety upgrades, which will flow on to road upgrades across country WA including the South West. An additional $16 million will go towards a new intersection and road connection on Forrest Highway at Vittoria Road. Mr Frydenberg announced the Coalition Government would cut the fuel excise by 22¢ a litre from midnight Tuesday for the next six months. This is aimed at easing pressure at the petrol bowser, with Australians now paying more than $2 a litre due to skyrocketing global oil prices. Mr Frydenberg said a family with two cars who fill up once a week could save about $30 per week on fuel, or a total of about $700 over the next six months. A one-off $420 cost of living tax offset will also go to more than 10 million low and middle income earners who bring in less than $126,000 per year. Welfare recipients will also have some financial relief through a one-off cost of living payment of $250 set to be delivered to the bank accounts of Australia’s six million pensioners, carers, veterans, job seekers, eligible self-funded retirees and concession-card holders. Prospective first-home buyers could also see some relief, with Mr Frydenberg announcing the Home Guarantee Scheme has been more than doubled to 50,000 places per year. This could help ease some of the housing pressure in the South West, although any relief on this front will only be felt in the medium to long term. There is hope the Government’s $2 billion injection to affordable housing through the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation will ease the pressure for lower income earners. Programs targeting family, domestic and sexual violence against women and children will receive $1.3 billion over the next six years. The treasurer tonight made an impassioned plea during his speech for Australians to help end these forms of violence against women.