Labor sticks to surplus path ahead of poll Treasurer Chris Bowen has accused the opposition of trying to avoid scrutiny of its policy costings, as Labor prepares to lay down a new pathway to a budget surplus. The economic update due on Thursday or Friday will take into account revenue declines since the May budget and is expected to revise growth and budget forecasts over four years. Mr Bowen recommitted to getting the budget back into the black in 2016/17, although he didn't say whether the target was still $6.6 billion. "But I do think it's important, economically, that there's a clear pathway to surplus," he told ABC television. The update will also lay out the savings Labor's planning to pay for some of the major policy changes it will take to the election - but could mean bigger deficits in this financial year and next year. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has committed to moving faster from a fixed to a floating carbon price and moving asylum seeker boat arrivals to Papua New Guinea for processing and potential resettlement. The carbon change is likely to cost the budget about $3.8 billion over the forward estimates, while the price of the PNG plan is still to be revealed. Labor has already earmarked $3.9 billion in savings, including $1.8 billion from changes to the way fringe benefits tax for cars is claimed. But while Australians could expect to see "tough" decisions in the update, Mr Bowen said the government also wanted to support jobs and growth. "If you are returning to surplus, and you have a reduction in revenue, then there are decisions that need to be made - responsibly - to get to surplus," he said. Labor could scrap the cash bonus paid to parents of school age children or tinker with the 30 per cent rebate on private health insurance cover. It could also increase tobacco and alcohol taxes or decide to means test the child care rebate, currently capped at $7500 a year. Mr Bowen agreed spending cuts were difficult politically, especially in an election year. "But that doesn't mean you avoid those tough decisions," he said. Cabinet was due on Monday night to sign off on the spending cuts recommended by Labor's expenditure review committee, which has met several times over the past week. Mr Abbott said cabinet was "in a panic" over the budget. "There are some people who are saying there needs to be expenditure restraint and there are others who are saying spend, spend, spend to try to buy the next election," he told reporters. Mr Bowen said Labor's policies would be properly costed under the Charter of Budget Honesty. By proposing to have its policies assessed by "private costers," as well as the Parliamentary Budget Office, the coalition wasn't being transparent, he said. With the election likely to be held on September 7 or September 21, a Galaxy poll puts Labor and the coalition neck-and-neck in terms of which side voters rate the better economic manager.