The government's inability to convince the public and Senate of the need for the changes contributed to an attempt by Liberal MPs to remove Mr Abbott from office, which in turn led the Prime Minister to dump many of the budget's controversial savings measures.

Mr Abbott has promised to deliver a "dull" and "routine" budget after key measures failed to pass the Senate. The government has since conceded the budget contained major unexpected policy changes, including a plan to deregulate universities and introduce a $7 GP co-payment.

The Group of Nine includes the Australian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Australia, Australian Industry Group, Australian Food and Grocery Council, National Farmers Federation, Property Council of Australia and Minerals Council of Australia.

"Past giants of economic reform did what was right for the long-term benefit of Australia and not because it was politically expedient – it rarely ever was."

Treasurer Joe Hockey has subsequently told colleagues he plans to deliver a budget surplus "as soon as possible", which the free market think tank and supporter of the Coalition, the Institute of Public Affairs, has said amounts to "never in this lifetime".

The Group of Nine statement said Australia cannot afford to continue mortgaging the nation's future "on the questionable assumption" that the budget might be fixed in the "never-never".

"There is no escaping that reform is hard and often unpopular in the short-term, but Australians are vastly better off for the actions of a previous generation of leaders. Our message to today's leaders is simple: governing is not just the responsibility of government, it is the duty of all members of Parliament, and we must stand on the shoulders of reform giants before it is too late."

Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Kate Carnell said Mr Abbott's pledge of a dull budget had "sent a level of concern" through the business community.

"We accept that you can't fix the budget in year one, two or three, we accept this has got to be a medium- to long-term effort, but if you don't start the process with an ongoing plan, we're going to be delivering a quality of life to our children and grandchildren that's worse than what our parents delivered to us," Ms Carnell said.