Finance Minister Mathias Cormann believes the improvement in the budget bottom line should give people a lot of confidence the government can return the budget to surplus by 2020/21.
The final budget outcome for 2016/17, released last week, showed a $33.2 billion deficit, smaller than the $37.6 billion deficit estimated in this year's May budget.
"We will continue to work as hard as we can, both in terms of strengthening economic growth, as well as making sure that spending as a share of GDP is as low as it can be," Senator Cormann told Sky News on Sunday.
He said the government remained totally committed to delivering on its 10-year tax plan that would lower the company tax rate for all businesses down to 25 per cent.
At 30 per cent, the tax rate is high by international standards with the UK at 19 per cent and looking to take it down further and the US committed to a tax rate of 20 per cent.
Senator Cormann said Australia needed to attract more investment to strengthen economic growth and allow all Australians to get ahead through more jobs and increased wages over time.
"By resisting our efforts to lower the business tax rate to 25 per cent, (Opposition Leader) Bill Shorten is wilfully damaging the Australian economy," Senator Cormann said.
Asked whether the government was considering personal tax cuts in the future, the minister said the government always reviewed at every budget what opportunities there were to lower the tax burden.
"We always want taxes to be as low as possible," he said.
However, shadow assistant treasurer Andrew Leigh said both major parties at the moment were proposing to raise income tax as a way of curtailing the growing deficit.
Labor believes that ought to be on the top two per cent of earners, while Dr Leigh said Treasurer Scott Morrison's party wanted it on everyone earning more than $20,000.
"Given the rapid rise in inequality, you have to wonder why Scott Morrison doesn't want to raise taxes on millionaires but does want to raise taxes on low wage workers," he told ABC television.
