Chris Trevor (Flynn, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the government’s National Rental Affordability Scheme Bill 2008 and the related National Rental Affordability Scheme (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2008. It is with great pride that I comment on these two bills. I am proud that my government is committed to tackling the issue of rental affordability and is acting swiftly, comprehensively and creatively to address this issue at its very core. As we are all aware, it is now harder than ever before in the history of Australia for people to find affordable rental accommodation. Nowhere is this pain felt more widely and more deeply than by those on low and even moderate incomes and their families. There are plenty of these people in my electorate of Flynn. It is these people on low and moderate incomes that are at the front of my mind today as I rise to speak on this very real, very painful and very relevant issue.

Across Australia, rental vacancy rates are at an all-time low. In my electorate of Flynn, in my home town of Gladstone, I am informed that rental vacancy figures have dropped to 1.5 per cent for the largest rental agency in town, and median rents for a three-bedroom house in Emerald, also in my electorate, have increased from $350 per week in 2006 to $380 per week in 2008. Of course, with low rental vacancies across my electorate and throughout Australia generally, there is increasing pressure on rental prices. There is only one way that rents have gone, and that is upwards. This is a very real issue that impacts on everyday life for my constituents who rent homes, as their rent has increased faster than any other everyday living expense. While rents increase to levels never seen before, my constituents in Flynn are forced to cut back on essentials, move house more frequently or live in cramped conditions just to keep a roof over their heads.

I am pleased to speak on these bills. They are particularly relevant to my electorate of Flynn. I am proud that my government is acting now on this problem that for too long has gone unanswered. The opposition’s approach to rental affordability when in government can be summed up in three ways, with respect, and they are neglect, more neglect and shameful neglect. Rather than sit and watch this problem worsen, we will act to give vulnerable Australian people access to affordable housing, to give them a home but, more importantly, to give them back a heart and their hope for the future.

The National Rental Affordability Scheme is aimed at encouraging investment in an area that has previously been underutilised. The scheme will present new opportunities for investors and a new asset class of investment in residential property. The scheme will also present opportunities for new and creative partnerships between institutional investors, developers, community groups and not-for-profit organisations, as well as all levels of government, to work together and provide a sustainable solution to providing affordable housing in Australia. I believe in my own heart that we can make a difference. I am more than happy to commend the bills to the House.

Debate (on motion by Ms Grierson) adjourned.

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