In a devastating intervention that has sent shockwaves through Canberra, former Finance Minister and current OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann has gone nuclear on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s economic management, issuing a stark final warning from Paris that Australia is hurtling toward a fiscal cliff unless Labor finally stops pretending the nation’s books will magically balance themselves.

What was intended to remain a hushed conversation among global finance elites has exploded into public view after Cormann seized on the latest OECD economic outlook to deliver a brutal, no-holds-barred indictment of Labor’s spending spree. The report he is wielding like a sledgehammer paints a grim picture: mounting public debt, persistent structural deficits, productivity growth stuck in the gutter, and a government that has spent years borrowing and splashing while ordinary Australians are crushed by inflation, soaring interest rates and a relentless cost-of-living nightmare.

Cormann did not mince words in his Paris press conference: “You can’t keep hiding. Every decision that adds to the debt pile must be publicly justified — or the country pays the price. Australia has been living beyond its means for too long. The structural deficits are widening, productivity is stagnant, and the reliance on borrowing to fund current spending is unsustainable. The books won’t balance themselves — no matter how much spin is applied.”

The warning is unmistakable: stop the excuses, stop the denial, stop pretending endless borrowing and splashing is “investment” — or watch the economy Labor has mismanaged collapse under its own weight.

Albanese’s response in Parliament was immediate and furious. Red-faced and shouting over the top, the Prime Minister desperately tried to shout down Cormann’s critique, accusing the former Liberal minister of “partisan politics” and “talking down the economy from overseas.” But the outburst only amplified the damage: the nation watched a visibly rattled PM lose composure as one of Australia’s most respected former finance heavyweights — a man who once sat in his own cabinet — delivered a verdict that could not be dismissed as opposition sniping.

The OECD data Cormann cited is damning: net debt projected to climb beyond $1 trillion within the decade under current trajectories, structural deficits averaging 2–3% of GDP even after the commodity boom fades, productivity growth languishing at 1% annually (half the long-term average), and real wages still below pre-2022 levels while household debt-to-income ratios remain near record highs.

Aussies are seething. Within minutes of the Cormann footage hitting social media, #CormannWarning and #AlboDebtBomb exploded nationwide. Ordinary voters vented raw anger: “Cormann’s right — Labor’s spent like drunks while we pay the bill!” “Debt exploding, productivity dead, cost-of-living killing us — and Albo shouts down the truth?” “If even their own former Finance Minister is warning of a cliff, why is Labor still flooring it?”

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton pounced: “Mathias Cormann — the man who balanced the budget under enormous pressure — has just confirmed what we’ve been saying for months: Labor’s reckless spending is driving Australia toward a fiscal cliff. Albanese’s fury shows he knows the warning is true. Time to stop the spin and start fixing the mess.” Pauline Hanson was even more direct: “Cormann’s from their own side and he’s calling them out — Labor’s big-spending fantasy is over. The people are done paying for their incompetence.”

Even within Labor, panic is spreading. Regional and outer-suburban MPs are reportedly terrified the OECD warning — delivered by a figure as credible as Cormann — could become a defining election issue. Insiders say the PM’s office is in “total meltdown,” scrambling to announce new cost-of-living measures before the backlash buries them.

Albanese’s office issued a defensive statement: “Australia’s economy is strong and resilient. We are investing in the future while managing debt responsibly. Mr Cormann’s comments are noted, but we will not be deterred from delivering for working families.” But the public isn’t buying it. With inflation still biting, interest rates punishing homeowners, and debt spiralling, voters see straight through the spin.

Mathias Cormann has fired the warning shot from Paris. The fiscal cliff is real. And Labor’s big-spending fantasy is now hanging by a thread.

Australia is watching. The anger is boiling. And the next election just got a lot closer for Anthony Albanese.

The truth is out. The excuses are over. And the country demands answers — not more debt