Jim Chalmers Responds To NSW Premier’s Budget Criticisms: ‘The Blues Just Don't Get It’

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Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has dismissed NSW Premier Chris Minns's calls for changes to the 2026 Federal Budget.

This unprecedented sparring between the Labor state Premier and the Labor Federal Treasurer comes after former prime minister Paul Keating described the current top marginal tax rate “confiscatory” - which is the type of word a prominent Labor figure uses when he's been begged by factional warlords to give comment but doesn't want to say something that normal people can understand.

However, the fact remains - the sharpest criticisms of the Federal Budget is coming from within the Labor Party,

This is mostly because the Liberal Party is too useless to even identify and highlight any discontent that might be permeating within the Australian public unless it involves vilifying immigrants or trans people.

Still, the Treasurer needs to answer to his own mob. Especially the new wave of Labor members who are tired of the party being dictated by appealing to 'the workers' - and want to live in a world where even lefties can be rich.

Minns, however, does not appear to be attacking the Budget from this neoliberal angle.

Instead, he's accusing Labor of not being Labor enough, with a unique set of criticisms.

The NSW Premier urged the Treasurer to reform Australia’s income tax system, arguing the government needed to “hand more money back” to wage earners, rather than focus on hosing down the crippling housing crisis with long overdue changes to negative gearing and tax loopholes for the baby boomer property investors who have destroyed the last three Labor leaders who attempted to do something about the warehousing of wealth in what used to be known as 'homes for people to live in'.

While the property council and real estate lobbyists are generally being ignored because they are the ones who got us in this mess in the first place, the share traders and start-up crowd are also seeming to get a bit of cut through with their grievances.

The small business community are also making their gripes known with thousands of A.I memes of Albanese.

But it Minns that appears to have landed the biggest punch on the Treasurer so far.

Chalmers, however, appears unconcerned with the NSW Premier's comments - and has instead dismissed the criticism as pre-origin shit talk.

"I think all Queenslanders agree with me when I say the Blues just don't get it"

"They don't get State of Origin and they don't get tax reform"

With these comments, Chalmers has accelerated the arrival of next week's rugby league-heavy news cycle, which is expected to imminently drown out any policy chatter.