Jim Chalmers is talkin’ ’bout generations – but is the message resonating with Australians? | Julianne Schultz

Tackling ‘intergenerational equity’ is laudable but surveys show young and old alike fear the economic future will not be as good as the past Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A political slogan where the key word has seven syllables will always be a hard sell. In-ter-gen-er-a-tion-al is such a word. It may only take a few moments to figure out that it means between generations. But generations are not homogeneous. “Intergenerational equity” conjures equality. It is an aspiration for fairness that is widely shared and deeply rooted in the Australian psyche. But a slogan that captures that desire for a fair go and shows what it means in real life would probably have better cut-through. What we need is “It’s the economy, stupid” – but on steroids. For years, surveys have been showing that young and old alike fear that the future will not be as good as the past. Both lived experience and the research data show that inequality in Australia has been growing over the past two decades. That inequality shows up in many ways, of which the ability of young people to buy homes is just one important marker. The young are also increasingly unlikely to b