I can't say I've ever dreamt of a career in politics at the best of times, but this week I wanted to be in Premier Steven Marshall and Treasurer Rob Lucas's shoes even less than normal.
In June last year, when Mr Lucas last delivered a budget, he announced a $94-million surplus, with a small surplus of $68m forecast for 2020-21 at the time.
The previous budget now feels like it was delivered a lifetime ago, in a very different world. We hadn't yet witnessed the bushfires that swept across thousands and thousands of hectares, and most of us would have thought a coronavirus was the result of drinking too much beer.
So much has changed in our country in the past year, and Mr Lucas's job has been made even harder by the state's GST revenue plummeting.
Instead of confirming a modest 2019-20 surplus, Mr Lucas had to announce the last financial year finished with a $1.485-billion deficit, with this financial year's result expected to be even more in the red at $2.6b.
While the budget is always about balancing the books, this year, more balance was required. There was the widely-recognised need to spend up big to stimulate the state's economy and kick-start our COVID-19 recovery, but this couldn't just come at any cost.
After all, while most people's first question about the budget will be, "What's in it for me?", this will be closely followed by, "Will there be a surplus, and if not, when will there be a surplus?"
Related reading: Ag spending to increase in budget focused on economic stimulus
But, Mr Lucas has indeed splashed the cash, announcing a $4b stimulus package to "jump-start" the economy, grow employment and help us put the financial difficulties caused by COVID-19 in the rearview mirror.
While we have so far done an incredible job of limiting the spread of coronavirus through the community, it's clear the impact of the virus on our state's economic health will be with us for years.
And although the path back into the black will be long, at least there is hope on the forward estimates horizon, with a surplus forecast for 2023-24 at this stage.
While there is light at the end of the tunnel, the situation could change significantly should GST revenues fall even further or if we are forced back into a second COVID-19 lockdown similar to the one Vic is emerging from. For so many reasons, we cannot afford to drop the ball.
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