BUDGET TIME

“There's no money in poetry, but then there's no poetry in money, either.” - Robert Graves

The day today was extremely busy and I worked non-stop for almost twelve hours. There were several important meetings and important deadlines to meet in terms of reports, as well as several urgent phone calls that needed important decision to be made. The day ended with a budget meeting, which (as these types of meetings go) went way overtime…

Budgeting really bores me, especially since I seem to have a good money sense and seem to do well with financial matters in terms of good management. However, I can see the importance of budgeting, especially when large sums of money are involved and a large complex organisation with much revenue and expenses is involved.

At the moment we are digesting a particularly unpalatable federal budget, which was handed down from the treasurer this week. Given that times are tough globally and we are living through a global recession that is of the first magnitude, nobody expected this federal budget to be beer and skittles. However, it contains some highly controversial items that renege on pre-election promises made by the government; the highly unpopular measure of increasing the pensionable age up to 67 years; cutbacks on rebates for private health insurance cover; a victimisation of single people in terms of unequal treatment in terms of deductions, etc; voluntary superannuation payment tax benefits decreased; cutting back on skilled migration programs; a deficit of over $50 billion!
(see http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/2009/05/12/78221_gold-coast-top-story.html).

The opposition of course are opposing this budget and some independent senators have threatened to vote against it in the upper house. This (and several other pending bills that the senate could refuse) will give the government cause for a double dissolution and an early federal election… Just what we needed!

In any case, the word for Thursday is quite apt then:

budget |ˈbəjit| noun
1) an estimate of income and expenditure for a set period of time: Keep within the household budget. | [as adj. ] A budget deficit.
• an annual or other regular estimate of national revenue and expenditure put forward by the government, often including details of changes in taxation.
• the amount of money needed or available for a purpose: They have a limited budget.
2) archaic a quantity of material, typically that which is written or printed.
Verb
(budgeted, budgeting |ˈbədʒədɪŋ|) [ intrans. ]
allow or provide for in a budget: The university is budgeting for a deficit | [as adj. ] (budgeted) A budgeted figure of $31,000 | [as n. ] ( budgeting) Corporate planning and budgeting.
• [ trans. ] provide (a sum of money) for a particular purpose from a budget: The council proposes to budget $100,000 to provide grants.
adjective [ attrib. ]
inexpensive: A budget guitar.
PHRASES
on a budget with a restricted amount of money: We're travelling on a budget.
DERIVATIVES
budgetary |-ˌterē| |ˈbədʒəˈtɛri| adjective

ORIGIN late Middle English: from Old French bougette, diminutive of bouge ‘leather bag,’ from Latin bulga ‘leather bag, knapsack,’ of Gaulish origin. Compare with bulge. The word originally meant a pouch or wallet, and later its contents. In the mid 18th century, the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK, in presenting his annual statement, was said “to open the budget.” In the late 19th century the use of the term was extended from governmental to private or commercial finances.