No budget sweeteners for Qld households

Despite a lack of sweeteners for families in the budget, Queensland's treasurer says there's still plenty to be excited about.

Queensland Treasurer Curtis Pitt.

Queensland's Treasurer isn't apologising for a lack of cost-of-living relief in the state budget. (AAP)

Queensland families hoping for cost-of-living relief in the Palaszczuk government's first budget will be sorely disappointed.

And Treasurer Curtis Pitt is making no apologies.

Described as a traditional Labor budget, the government's 2015/16 fiscal blueprint is heavy on health and education spending, with Mr Pitt boasting a record spend in each department of $14.2 billion and $12.4 billion respectively.

Meanwhile, there isn't a single sweetener - like a freeze on car registration or power bill relief - that households living week-to-week will be able to look forward to.

But Mr Pitt insisted a focus on employment growth was needed to help struggling families.

"We thought the best way that we could assist Queenslanders with cost of living and paying the bills, was of course being in employment," Mr Pitt said.

"We had a very jobs-focused (election) campaign, which this budget delivers on - jobs now and jobs for the future."

Mr Pitt insisted there was still plenty that ordinary Queenslanders could get excited about in the budget, particularly the increased funding for schools and hospitals.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk also defended the lack of sweeteners, saying at least her government wasn't cutting pensioner concessions like the Liberal National Party did last year after federal funding was cut.

"We never want to see vulnerable Queenslanders put in that position ever again," she said.

"Fundamentally, this is a Labor budget. This is about growing our economy. It's about creating jobs. It's making sure that we have investment in training."


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Source: AAP


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