Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

My electorate of Corangamite is magnificent in its natural beauty, but beneath the surface there are housing challenges—challenges made worse by nine years of gross inaction by the former coalition government. Business owners across the Surf Coast and the Bellarine Peninsula tell me that a lack of available houses is making it harder to attract workers. And then there is the growing number of single mums with children, and women in their 50s, living in their cars, moving from house to house and relying on the generosity of friends and family to put a roof over their heads. Jenny is one such single mum who shared her very challenging story with me. She was couch surfing with her children, relying on friends for help, and sporadically living in her car. We supported Jenny to find a safe place to live, but everybody deserves a roof over their head, a place to call home. That's why the Housing Australia Future Fund Bill 2023 is so important.

The Albanese Labor government recognises the urgent need for a comprehensive housing plan for the nation. We recognise that we must act now. Unlike the coalition, Labor went to the last election with an ambitious housing reform agenda to ensure more Australians have a safe and affordable place to call home. We said we won't waste a day in delivering that agenda, which is why with this legislation we are implementing a number of our housing commitments. The package is a comprehensive suite of measures which will enable one of the most significant Australian government investments in housing in a generation.

We will establish the National Housing Supply and Affordability Council to provide independent advice to government on ways to increase housing supply and affordability. Unlike the coalition, which abolished the former National Housing Supply Council, we value the data and advice provided by that council as a crucial planning tool. It must be said that the abolition of the National Housing Supply Council by the coalition has significantly contributed to the crisis in housing affordability and availability across our nation and, therefore, to the hardship being experienced by so many Australians. It was short-sighted decision-making by a visionless government.

Reliable, trusted data didn't exist. Booms and busts snuck up unseen, making house prices difficult to predict. Too many Australians are being hit by growing rents. Too many Australians are struggling to buy a home. Too many Australians are facing or experiencing homelessness. This is largely due to the former government's ineptitude to recognise and act on significant housing issues.

In my own electorate of Corangamite the G21 alliance of five local municipal councils, businesses and organisations across the region say the need for social housing is acute. G21 believe there are at least 880 homeless people in the Geelong region and more than 5,000 people experiencing severe rental stress. Last October the Geelong Advertiser reported rental affordability in the region was at a record low, with just one in every 12 homes on the local rental market considered affordable. In the city of Geelong, just 8.7 per cent of rentals were considered affordable. That was dramatically down from 24.5 per cent in 2012 and 76.7 per cent in 2002. Late last year, the Community Housing Industry Association said the Surf Coast Shire, taking in areas in my electorate like Torquay and Anglesea, was experiencing huge rises in homelessness and rapidly increasing rents, with rental vacancy rates lower than 1.8 per cent. The severe shortage of accessible homes and the spike in homelessness is forcing regional councils to set aside land for future social housing. This is a worthy approach that includes public housing and homes managed by non-profit groups for people on low incomes. Similar challenges exist across the Golden Plains Shire in my electorate. In fact, each municipality in my electorate is developing their own plans to counter these challenges.

Our housing plan will be pivotal in helping councils, states and territories meet the current housing challenges. We will establish the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund to provide a stream of funding, ensuring there is a future pipeline of new social and affordable housing for Australians in need. We will transform the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation into Housing Australia as a national home for key housing programs, and we will expand its activities. These commitments are part of the government's broader housing reform agenda which is already progressing. We've reached a landmark National Housing Accord, a shared ambition to build one million well-located homes over the next five years from 2024. We've committed $350 million in additional Commonwealth funding to deliver 10,000 affordable homes over five years from 2024, matched by the states with another 10,000 homes. We're widening the remit of the National Housing Infrastructure Facility, making up to $575 million immediately available to invest in social and affordable housing. We're developing a National Housing and Homelessness Plan to set short-, medium- and long-term goals to improve household outcomes across Australia. We're implementing the Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee, which has already helped more than 1,600 Australians into homeownership.

I will now address the specifics of the three bills before the House. The Housing Australia Future Fund Bill 2023 establishes the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund as a source of funding for social and affordable houses and acute housing needs. The government will credit the fund with $10 billion after establishment. It is to be invested by the future fund board of guardians to produce returns to fund social and affordable housing and acute housing needs. The proceeds from the fund will also help deliver the government's commitment to build 30,000 new social and affordable homes. Importantly, the fund will also help address acute housing needs by providing $200 million over five years for the improvement of housing in Indigenous communities. Significantly, there will also be $100 million for housing options for women and children impacted by family and domestic violence, and the growing number of older women at risk of homelessness. There will be $30 million to build housing and fund specialist services for veterans experiencing homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness.

The government, through Housing Australia, will work with community housing providers, state and territory governments and other providers to improve housing outcomes in Australia. In addition to establishing the Housing Australia Future Fund, the government has expanded the remit of the National Housing Infrastructure Facility to make $575 million immediately available to fund social and affordable housing. The immediate availability of funding is important, as the shortage of housing inherited from the coalition is with us now, impacting people right now.

The National Housing Supply and Affordability Council Bill 2023 will establish the National Housing Supply and Affordability Council as an independent statutory advisory body. Establishing the council will help the Commonwealth play a leadership role in tackling the housing challenges facing Australia. Labor committed to establishing the council as a part of the housing agenda it took to the federal election, recognising the importance of access to safe, secure and affordable housing for Australians. The council will provide a centre of expertise to bolster the evidence base for ways to improve housing supply and affordability. In addition to providing independent expert advice to government, the council will research and report on matters relating to housing supply and affordability.

The Treasury Laws Amendment (Housing Measures No. 1) Bill 2023 renamed the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation to Housing Australia and will increase the responsibilities in line with the government's election commitment. The functions of Housing Australia are changing to better reflect its role, including responsibility for helping to deliver the government's commitment on social and affordable housing. Housing Australia will continue the activities of the previous National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation. That includes the operation of the Affordable Housing Bond Aggregator, capacity building for community housing providers, administering the government's Home Guarantee Scheme and the $1 billion National Housing Infrastructure Facility. Housing Australia will continue to operate as a corporate Commonwealth entity governed by an independent board and reporting to the Minister for Housing.

A further schedule of the amendment bill streamlines the relevant functions of Housing Australia. It also establishes an annual review mechanism for the National Housing Infrastructure Facility, allowing the government to regularly review its performance.

Another schedule of the amendment bill extends the legislated Commonwealth guarantee. That underpins the bonds issued by the previous National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation to provide low-cost finance for community housing providers, applying to contracts until 30 June 2028.

The housing availability and affordability shambles inherited from the coalition desperately needs fixing. It will not happen overnight, but we recognise it must be done. These bills go a long way towards achieving our aim. The Albanese government reforms are much needed and urgent. They deserve our attention and the support of this parliament. They will help our most vulnerable, such as single mothers like Jenny and her children, who deserve to have a place to call home. There is nothing more important. So this bill deserves support from those opposite and a speedy passage through this parliament. I commend the bills to the House.

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