Mark Knight cartoon shows worries keeping Treasurer Jim Chalmers awake at night

The Albanese Government handed down its first budget this week, the first for the Labor Party in over a decade.

The budget is where the government announces what it is going to spend our hard earned taxes* on for the next year, for example things like defence, health and welfare. It also tells us how much debt the country has and what taxes the government will raise or reduce in order to run the country.

Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has the job of overseeing the budget and looking after Australia’s finances, a job he campaigned* very strongly for during the election.

Lately he might be thinking of that phrase “Be careful what you wish for”, because it is a challenging time to be the Treasurer.

There are a few issues that might cause worry for the person in charge of the national piggy bank and Dr Chalmers himself said this week that some areas of the budget were keeping him awake at night! Major concerns include rising inflation (the price rises of goods and services that reduce the value of our spending power), the war in Ukraine, the cost of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the floods and electricity prices. These could all cause the Treasurer to lie awake at 3am staring at the ceiling!

I had an image of Dr Chalmers lying awake in his bed and thought I could create a cartoon that summed up the national anxiety* about our financial future.

I started with a sketch of the Treasurer’s home. It’s 3am and we are looking in through his bedroom window. I thought this was a good way of showing what external forces might be keeping him awake.

Heavy rain, which has caused so much flood devastation down the east coast of Australia, falls on the tin roof. That would certainly keep you awake, I thought. I added sandbags to show the level of threat these floods will cause the budget.

Power prices are another big issue, so to illustrate that the electricity meter box on the front of the house is smouldering*. That would wake a person up!

Then there’s the major issue of inflation. The Treasurer referred to inflation as “the dragon we need to slay*”.

Taking that lovely image of an “inflation dragon”, I used my cartoonist’s licence for exaggeration* to start sketching a fearsome looking, fire-breathing beast.

We have all been woken at night by possums on our roof. Those furry little creatures can sound like elephants at times. So I wondered what a 5 ton flying, fire-breathing inflation dragon must sound like on your roof in the middle of the night.

The size of the creature symbolises* the extent of the threat that runaway* inflation poses on our economy.

The cartoon paints a picture of the multitude* of concerns facing the federal budget and our economic future.

A giant inflation dragon on your roof in the middle of the night? That’s definitely enough to keep a federal treasurer awake!

GLOSSARY

• taxes: money taken out of people’s wages so the government can pay for services that people need
• campaigned: worked in an organised way to achieve something
• anxiety: feeling of worry
• smouldering: burning slowly with smoke but no flames
• slay: kill
• licence for exaggeration: permission to make something seem larger, more important, better or worse than it really is
• symbolises: represents, is a symbol of something
• runaway: out of control
• multitude: large number, many

EXTRA READING

All schools to get funding for e-safety

Inflation dragon turns up the heat

Other story puts Federal budget in shade

Finding a positive message in uncertain times

QUICK QUIZ

1. What is the name of Australia’s Treasurer?
2. Name three concerns Mark Knight thinks could be keeping the Treasurer awake at night?
3. What time of the night is Mark’s cartoon set?
4. Why did Mark add sandbags to his cartoon?
5. What does the size of the inflation dragon symbolise?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. What happens next?
Imagine this cartoon is part of a story that is made up of three cartoons. The three cartoons tell a complete story, and Mark’s cartoon is the start of the story. Think about what the story could be and draw the next two cartoons that tell the story.

Time: allow 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Visual Arts, Visual Communication Design, Critical and Creative Thinking

2. Extension
Being able to draw is only one of the skills needed to be a great cartoonist. Write a list of all of the other skills that you think cartoonists like Mark need to do their job.

Next to each skill, write a sentence that explains why that skill is important or helps them to do a great job.

Time: allow at least 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Personal and Social Capability, Media Arts, Visual Communication Design

VCOP ACTIVITY
Stretch your sentence
Find a “who” in the cartoon – a person or an animal. Write it down.

Add three adjectives to describe them better.

Now add a verb to your list. What are they doing?

Add an adverb about how they are doing the action.

Using all the words listed, create one descriptive sentence.