Budget 2019: Audrey Young - Wellbeing Budget is different, but it isn't radical

Grant Robertson's Wellbeing Budget is a little different to previous ones.

But it is not dramatically different.

There is no question of the Government abandoning orthodox fiscal management or presentation.

"Wellbeing" has been an incredibly successful marketing tool.

But the Budget itself shows that term for Wellbeing might just be much higher spending in areas that are most important to the Labour-led Government.

Much much higher, even to the satisfaction of some in National.

The $1.9 billion funding for mental health over five years, for example, and the indexation of main social welfare benefits to the average wage which will give meaningful annual increases to benefits.

National's mental health spokesman, Matt Doocey, said only yesterday that the Government would need to spend at least $1.9b on mental health - and they have delivered.

And Children's Commission Andrew Becroft said in response to the Welfare Expert Advisory Group that the most meaningful recommendation the Government could accept was to index benefits to wages - and they have delivered.

One of the more popular measures promised by Labour last election was donations relief for parents from Decile 1 to 7 schools. For schools that decide to participate, the Government will give $150 per student. That could amount to half a million children at 1700 schools.

One of the small differences with Robertson's budgets compared to previous ministers' is that the Secretary of Treasury has given an overview of the economic and fiscal indicators ahead of the Finance Minister's appearance.

Gabriel Makhlouf was not invited to do so last year or this year - although he did attend the lock-up at the back of the room.

That was fitting not just because Robertson this morning expressed his disappointment with Treasury's handling of the so-called Budget leak but because it emphasised the political decisions behind the Budget.

Robertson turned up to the lock-up with an army of ministers: Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, Greens co-leader James Shaw, Health Minister David Clark, Environment Minister David Parker, Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni, Children's Minister Tracey Martin and Whānau Ora Minister Peeni Henare.

He has been willing to spread the political wellbeing and confirmed what everyone knew, that all his future Budgets would be called Wellbeing Budgets as well.

Robertson has always considered the communications of a party's economic policy to be almost as important as the policy itself.

His Wellbeing Budget proves that.