After months of seemingly talking about nothing else but housing affordability, Treasurer Scott Morrison has changed the focus of his pre-budget discussion to government debt.
Mr Morrison used his final speech before the May 9 budget on Thursday to explain how "good" and "bad" debt will be better presented in the budget papers.
It will make clearer what government expenditure is contributing to investment and increasing productivity, and debt that is incurred in dealing with everyday spending.
The difference between "good" and "bad" debt is like a household taking on a mortgage to buy a home compared to using a credit card to fund a holiday.
Labor says it is an accounting mechanism to hide the fact the coalition has failed to get debt under control as promised when it came to power in 2013.
Debt has risen from around $320 billion in 2013/14 to just under $500 billion now and is expected to balloon to almost $650 billion in 2026/27.
ANZ head of Australian economics David Plank said the timing of the change may be a signal that the upcoming budget will contain a lot of additional capital spending.
"We doubt the rating agencies or the market will simply accept a good/bad split on debt without casting a critical eye on where the money is going," he said.
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