Foreword

In 2014–15 the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) will focus on continuing to help level the playing field for parliamentary parties and independent parliamentarians and enhance the transparency of the budget and fiscal policy settings.

The majority of the PBO’s resources will continue to be allocated to responding to requests for costings and budget analyses from parliamentarians. Experience to date suggests that these services which are available to all parliamentarians will continue to be in high demand, in particular from non-government parties and independent parliamentarians who, unlike the Government, do not have access to such services from departments of state.

Increasingly, public discussion on fiscal sustainability is concentrating on the impact of the budget over the next decade (the medium term), rather than simply over the forward estimates period (the budget year plus the three forward years). The Government publishes aggregate projections of payments, receipts and the underlying cash balance over the medium term. However, official projections of key heads of revenue and major expenditure programs are not published.

The PBO’s published research will continue to inform parliamentarians and the public on the budget and fiscal policy settings and increasingly focus on highlighting medium term budget issues and their implications for fiscal sustainability.

Mindful of its need to serve the Australian Parliament effectively and to be held to account appropriately, the PBO will develop a stakeholder survey in 2014–15 to provide a systematic basis for stakeholders to give constructive feedback to the PBO on the services it provides along with suggestions for ongoing improvement.

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