- Published:
- Tuesday 5 May 2026 at 1:05 pm
With Donald Trump’s war driving up costs at home, Labor is doing everything we can to help right now.
That’s why the Victorian Budget 2026/27 delivers real help to make life easier, safer and more affordable.
Liberals oppose these solutions. They don’t believe Government should step in and support families who need it.
We do – and we can afford it, because our fiscal plan is on track and the Budget is in surplus.
Cost of living
The Budget funds free PT until the end of May, and half-price PT until the end of the year.
It also delivers 20 per cent off rego.
Soon, you’ll be able to claim this through a rebate, saving you around $180 per car.
This is real help right now, for millions of Victorians.
Families can also get support with free school uniforms, free dental care – and free glasses, now expanded.
Funding for food banks and financial counselling is going up, because people absolutely need it right now.
The cost of living isn’t just about money – it’s also about time.
That’s why we’re improving roads and public transport to get you home sooner.
We’re delivering more trains built locally – and more train services running across Melbourne and Victoria.
And more funding for roads – enough to remove 200,000 potholes and 200,000 graffiti tags.
Health
Too many children are waiting too long for surgery because of surging demand – we’re tackling it head on.
The Budget delivers 4,000 more kids’ surgeries and 45,000 more specialist appointments.
This is personal for me, because I know how scary it is to have a child in hospital waiting for surgery.
Only a Labor Government is prepared to invest to help sick children get back to school, and get back to being kids.
Labor always invests in health.
We have delivered 11 new hospitals and hired 17,000 nurses and midwives.
The Budget delivers bigger and better services at Cranbourne, Craigieburn, Pakenham, Werribee, Geelong, Melton, Shepparton and the Angliss Hospital.
We’re funding Urgent Care Clinics to take pressure off busy emergency departments.
And we’re growing the health workforce – with more graduate nursing and midwifery positions, and more speech pathologists and occupational therapists.
Education
Great, affordable public schools and TAFEs are one of the biggest ways we can help the cost of living.
Free TAFE not only saves people money – it boosts skills and grows our economy.
That’s why we’re expanding it, with this Budget delivering more Free TAFE places and funding an expected 15,000 students to study free next year.
Labor has opened 19 new schools this year alone.
That means thousands of kids can attend a great public school in their local community.
We’re building on that in this Budget – with more new schools and campuses, more upgrades, and more land secured for future schools in growing areas.
Labor introduced Free Kinder, Labor is expanding it – and only Labor will continue it.
The Budget invests in 22 new kindergartens at or near school sites and five Early Learning Victoria centres.
Free Kinder, Free TAFE, new schools – this is what backing families looks like in the education state.
Safety
Victoria has the most police in Australia, Australia’s toughest bail laws and Australia’s only Violence Reduction Unit (VRU).
We’ve made progress in the crime stats, with youth male offending down and bail refusals up, but there’s more work to do.
This Budget boosts the number of protective services officers (PSOs) on our transport system.
It invests in faster courts – with a specialised, fast-tracked youth court list in the County Court.
That’s how we’re delivering Adult Time for Violent Crime.
While we need serious consequences for violent crime, we also need to get to the root cause and stop crime before it starts.
Our Budget invests $33 million in Victoria’s VRU.
Funding will go directly towards new programs that identify and disrupt youth crime patterns early.
A Violence Reduction Unit in Scotland and London was proven to reduce violent crime.
The Liberals oppose the VRU – it’s just another Liberal cut that will make our community less safe.
Economy
Donald Trump’s war is making life hard for families here.
But they can be confident in Victoria’s long-term outlook.
Over the last decade, Victoria’s economy has grown faster than any other state, and we expect it to keep growing.
Business investment has grown by 44 per cent since September 2020, faster than the rest of Australia.
Our fiscal plan is on track and working, with debt reducing as a share of the economy over the forward estimates.
Unlike New South Wales and Queensland, our Budget is in surplus this year.
And it will be in surplus again next year.
That means we can afford to invest in the help that families need right now.
Quotes attributable to Premier Jacinta Allan
“With Donald Trump’s war driving up costs at home, I’m doing everything I can to help.”
“Half-price public transport, 20 per cent off rego – this is help that families deserve right now.”
“We can afford it because our Budget is in surplus.”
“Only Labor has new solutions to make life easier, safer and more affordable.”
“Labor is investing in more surgeries for kids, more PSOs on trains, and more free TAFE – will the Liberals back it, or will they cut it?”