When Treasurer Josh Frydenberg stands at the despatch box in the House of Representatives on Tuesday night, we will finally get to hear his vision for a post-pandemic, post-recession Australia, and how the Morrison government is going to deliver that vision.
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Of course, as is the habit of governments these days, weeks of pre-budget announcements and the rumour mill working at top speed means Australians already know much of what will be in the speech.
Wage subsidies for new apprentices, assistance for first home buyers to build new homes, tax concessions for businesses and $1.5 billion for manufacturing have already been locked in.
And while it hasn't been said specifically, that tax cuts already legislated for 2024 will be brought forward is being reported as signed, sealed, delivered.
On Tuesday night we will see the full picture, all of these measures as they fit in the puzzle among other yet-to-be seen measures. What areas will be stimulated, how long it will take, and who is likely to benefit.
We will also finally see what measures, and who, are left out of the budget. We will see how the promised measures will be paid for. The government has said it will not concentrate on getting the budget into surplus until the unemployment rate is below 6 per cent, so any cuts to spending will be difficult to justify for reason of debt.
In pre-budget interviews, Mr Frydenberg has set the scene for unemployment to rise above its current levels, but not as far as the 10 per cent that had been predicted by Treasury and the Reserve Bank.
For young people entering the workforce, their wages are likely to be 8 per cent less than expected this year, and 3 per cent lower over the next five years. It's a grim prospect and the Treasurer defines his challenge as reducing "scarring" on the economy from the pandemic, especially for those younger Australians who will bear the brunt of job losses and reduced wages.
Mr Frydenberg is not the first Australian treasurer to grapple with how to lead the country out of a recession. But his cocktail of problems to solve is unique, with the net overseas migration rate set to head into the negative as more people leave than arrive, and a declining fertility rate.
We cannot depend on there being a continual flow of new people to build houses, spend money and add to the economy. Economic stimulation will need to come from other sources.
Back in July, Prime Minister Scott Morrison told a joint party room briefing the pandemic and its response "will take us outside of our comfort zone sometimes but we need to look to our philosophical principles".
At the same meeting Mr Frydenberg said "our opponents see government as a limitless provider; we see government as an enabler".
It is just over a week since the JobSeeker coronavirus supplement was cut, and the JobKeeper wage subsidy reduced. People are already feeling the pain and looking ahead with uncertainty about their financial situation.
Every budget is always reported with a list of winners and losers, and for many, there is significantly more than usual riding on being a winner this time around.
While the government has signalled it is unlikely to return the JobSeeker unemployment payment back to its previous level of $40 a day at the end of the year, it is vital that people are given certainty and a payment that helps them to thrive, not just survive.
