NOW we have a budget in trouble and it's all the fault of Abbott, Hockey, Cormann and the rest of those mindless ideologues

Herald Sun 1 December 2014:

Forget Treasurer Joe Hockey's prediction of a balanced budget in 2017-18 because it's "well and truly toast".

That's the assessment of Deloitte Access Economics economist Chris Richardson, who is predicting bigger budget deficits across the forward estimates in the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook.

Mr Richardson, who has long criticised both sides of politics for their handling of the budget, expects the 2014-15 deficit to blow out to $34.7 billion, about $5bn more than forecast.

Deficits will be $10bn larger in each of the following three years.

"Red ink will once again be the new black," Mr Richardson said about the MYEFO on Monday.

Australian Financial Review 1 December 2014:

Around half the policies in the May budget will never see the light of day and will have to be recast or replaced.

Economic conditions mean that the Coalition’s boasts that it could fix the budget faster than Labor are in tatters. The budget bottom line deteriorates by the day.