Is there anything more exciting than the mid-year check-in on the nation’s finances? Yes, there is. But for federal fiscal fanatics, MYEFO (the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook) was highly anticipated because there were questions about just how much the Delta lockdowns and restrictions hurt our economy. But just like it did after the cluster-disaster that was 2020, our economy is surprising analysts on the upside. There’s no escaping the big losses. By 2024-25, gross debt is expected to reach $1.2 trillion, thank you COVID. For context, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says that’s “less than half the average across G20 advanced countries today”. But our high vaccination and employment rates will help us crack on economic growth, he says. Labor’s Treasury spokesman Jim Chalmers said the Coalition can take no credit for jobs growth and all of it for cost-of-living pressures. He also reckons Team Morrison have carved off $16 billion for election announcements.