Federal Budget 2023-24: What it means for Cyber Security and Defence

The 2023-24 Federal Budget has been handed down by the Treasurer Hon. Jim Chalmers.  The AUCloud team have taken a lens on how the Budget is set to affect Cyber Security, Defence, Skills & Employment, Spending and Taxation.

Critical Importance of Cyber Security

“The Government recognises the critical importance of cyber security to maintain public trust in government institutions, businesses and individuals. The National Cyber Security Coordinator has been established to strengthen Australia’s cyber resilience and strategically manage cyber security activity across government, the private sector and the community. Greater coordination will ensure government is better placed to protect Australians from cyber attacks by helping affected individuals and businesses recover if major incidents occur.

Work is ongoing to combat scams and online fraud to protect Australians from financial harm. A National Anti-Scams Centre will be established to better protect Australian consumers and business by improving cooperation between government and industry to respond to increasingly sophisticated scam activity and provide consistent communication and messaging on scam protection and prevention. The Centre is a critical component of the Government’s plan to fight back against scammers on behalf of Australians.

The Government is making it safer and easier for people to verify their identity digitally, while minimising the collection of personal information. Digital ID will be a voluntary, secure and trusted way for Australians to use the government services they rely on. The Government is investing in the future of the Digital ID program to expand the services that can be accessed using a digital ID. This investment includes the development of legislation, appointing a regulator, continuing the accreditation of private sector digital ID providers, as well as the ongoing operation and development of myGov ID. It also includes working with the states and territories, through Data and Digital Ministers, to ensure interoperability within the Digital ID program. The expanded use of digital IDs means that in the future businesses will store less personal information, minimising the impact of any potential data breaches.”

Uplifting Australia’s Cyber Security Posture

The Government is investing more than $2 billion in new digital solutions for improved service delivery, modernising outdated legacy platforms and IT systems, and foundational work to ensure that critical future investment maximises value for the taxpayer.

Protecting Australians against scams and data breaches

• To reduce the prevalence of scams, the Government is allocating $86.5 million to establish a National Anti-Scam Centre, boost the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s work to disrupt investment scam websites, and establish Australia’s first SMS Sender ID Registry to prevent scammers imitating trusted brand names.
• The Government is providing $44.3 million to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner to take appropriate regulatory action, enhance its data and analytics capability, and support a standalone Privacy Commissioner.

Expanding Digital ID

• Digital ID is a secure, voluntary and convenient way to verify a person’s identity online, while minimising collection of personal information.
• The Government is investing $26.9 million in 2023-24 to expand Digital ID – helping to increase efficiency and consumer protection, reduce fraud, and make it easier for people to access services online.

Consumer Data Right

• The Government continues its investment in the Consumer Data Right with $88.8 million over 2 years to support the CDR in banking, energy, and the non-bank lending sectors and deliver a cyber security uplift.

Growing critical technology industries

• The Government has allocated $101.2 million over 5 years to support the development and uptake of technologies that are enabling capabilities across Australian industries – commencing in quantum and artificial intelligence. It will support a Critical Technologies Challenge Program beginning with a focus on quantum.
• It will also extend the National AI Centre and its role supporting responsible AI usage and will create an Australian Centre for Quantum Growth to connect and amplify Australia’s quantum ecosystem.

Initiatives for small business

• $23.4 million to help small businesses build their resilience to cyber security attacks by training in-house cyber wardens.
• Cyber Wardens program will be delivered by the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia; 50,000+ cyber wardens to trained over the next 3 years.

Cyber Security – additional funding Payments

The Government will provide $101.6 million over 5 years from 2022–23 (and $11.8 million per year ongoing) to support and uplift cyber security in Australia.

• Funding includes: $46.5 million over 4 years from 2023–24 (and $11.8 million per year ongoing) to establish the Coordinator for Cyber Security to ensure that the Commonwealth’s cyber security efforts are strategic, coordinated, timely and effective.
• The Coordinator will be supported by the National Office of Cyber Security and dedicated resources from within the Department of Home Affairs and other Commonwealth entities, with capacity to surge further in the event of a cyber incident
• $23.4 million over 3 years from 2023–24 to the Department of the Treasury for a small business cyber wardens program delivered by the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia, to support small businesses to build in-house capability to protect against cyber threats
• $19.5 million in 2023–24 to continue work to improve the security of critical infrastructure assets and assist owners and operators to respond to significant cyber-attacks
• $12.2 million in 2023–24 to sustain cyber resilience of Commonwealth entities currently serviced by the Cyber Hubs pilot program and to continue assessment and certification of service providers used by the Commonwealth entities to host data.

The cost of this measure will be partially met from within the existing resources of the Department of Home Affairs and by redirecting funding provided to the Australian Taxation Office for Cyber Hub pilot activities.

Buy Australia Plan

Improving the approach to Government procurement…

• The Budget builds on the creation of the Future Made in Australia Office by providing $18.1 million to increase engagement with businesses, improve AusTender and procurement capability across the Australian Public Service.
• The Buy Australian Plan is a comprehensive program that will improve our approach to Government procurement and use the Government’s buying power to help industry grow by competing for and winning more government contracts, provide more diversity in our supply chains, and invite innovation.

Defence

Strengthening sovereignty & security…

• 20,000 jobs over the next 30 years in advanced manufacturing, broaden our industrial base and create more high-skilled, high-paid jobs for more Australians.
• Extra defence spending following AUKUS submarines deal and strategic review.
• $400 million for defence force retention bonuses.

Skills & Employment

• $392.4 million Industry Growth Program will help support small to medium-sized businesses and startups develop new products and services to grow their operations.

Spending

• Aged care budget to rise from $24.8 billion to $29.6 billion, with the figure hitting $35.8 billion by 2025/26.
• $535.3 million towards the nine National Collecting Institutions – such as the National Library and National Gallery of Australia – over four years.
• $163.4 million for the Australian Institute of Marine Science.
• $3.7 billion extra for the five-year National Skills Agreement, taking total spending to $12.8 billion.
• Review of $120 billion infrastructure project list.

Tax

• Multinational tax avoidance crackdown continues.
• Income and company tax receipts to be higher than expected.

Cuts

• $17.8 billion in budget savings and shifted spending, including $7.8 billion in defence project re-prioritisation.
• Total savings of $40 billion across the October and May budgets.

General Budget Position

• Budget surplus of about $4 billion, with smaller than previously expected deficits over the next four years.

• The deficit for 2022/23 was $11.2 billion at the end of March, against the October budget prediction of $33.4 billion.
• Government debt is just under $900 billion, with an expected interest bill of $110 billion over five years.
• Treasury expects a 0.75 per cent increase in real wages in 2023/24, reflecting the combination of rising wages and falling inflation.
• Growth to slow to 1.25 per cent in 2023/24 as cost-of-living pressures and rising interest rates increasingly weigh on consumption.
• Net overseas migration numbers are being boosted by international students and working holiday makers.
• Several payments are growing faster than the economy including interest on government debt and increased spending on NDIS, health, aged care and defence.​​​