In among the big-ticket cost of living announcements and record investments in health, defence and small business, some smaller budget allocations can easily be overlooked.
From tackling illegal logging to expanding support to grieving parents of stillborns, there is something in this budget for most industries and every Australian.
Here are some tidbits you might have missed.
A hand to grieving parents
As part of a $28m maternal health bereavement support package, $2.2m has been set aside over three years to fund transport costs for parents, when travel is required for a stillbirth autopsy to be performed.
That’s in addition to $11.2m over three years to increase stillbirth autopsies by creating dedicated peri-natal pathologist positions in each state and territory.
Funding worth $5.1m over four years will establish a new grant program for stillbirth and miscarriage support services.
Illegal logging and the Queen’s trees
The government will spend $4.4m over the next two years to strengthen Australia’s “illegal logging traceability and timber identification systems”.
It’s part of the government’s $114.6m five-year package, announced last year, to support the forestry and fishing industries.
And, to mark the Queen’s Jubilee, $20.3m over the three years from 2021-22 financial year will be spent on encouraging community grants to plant trees.
The funding for this was provided before this budget.
Fighting ‘new’ crimes
With foreign interference, espionage and money laundering crimes on the rise around the globe, the Attorney-General’s department will spend $15.7m over four years to increase national capacity.
The money will increase the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecution’s capacity to respond to the increasing caseload as a result of the listing of new crimes in the Criminal Code.
Getting Aussie Paralympians to Paris
More than $10m will be spent over the coming three years for Paralympics Australia to prepare and support the Australian Paralympic Team ahead of the 2024 Paralymic Games.
It’s part of a $119.3m package outlined in last year’s budget to support international sporting events and sport participation in Australia.
Just over $3m will be spent over two years for Football Australia to get more women and girls to participate in football.
At least $79.6m of the package has been put aside for the continuation of ‘Sporting Schools’ over the next three years, to assist children “of all abilities” to be more physically active and develop healthy behaviours.
Helping Aussies stay sexually healthy
As part of a suite of preventive health measures, $8.6m xjmtzywwill be spent over the coming year to continue initiatives preventing and treating bloodborne viruses and sexually transmissible infections.
Memorialising veterans overseas
Over the coming two years, the government will spend $4.9m to construct a remembrance trail on a Greek island to honour Australian veterans.
The money will build the “Lemnos Remembrance Trail” on the former site of an Australian field hospital on the island of Lemnos.
And, in Malaysia, $5.1m will be spent over the next three years to rebuild the visitors’ pavilion in the Sandakan Memorial Park.
