Cameron Caldwell (Fadden, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

In the nearly two years since this government were elected, they've produced failed policies that have created a housing crisis for now desperate Australians. Homeownership, especially for first home buyers, has never been further out of reach. The Gold Coast, my home town, has always been a place of aspiration, a growing regional city known for our standard of living and quality of life. But under the Albanese Labor government, generations of prosperity and sustainable growth are at risk. Labor is crushing the dreams of aspirational young families in suburbs like Gaven, Pacific Pines, Ormeau and Pimpama. I say to those young Australians: don't write off your dreams; vote for the coalition at the next election, because we are here for you.

The number of first home buyers is at the lowest level since the Prime Minister's mentor, Julia Gillard, was equally failing Australians on every major issue back in 2008. Lending for new homes is now at a shameful 20-year low. And it's not at all surprising that there's no confidence in the construction sector, when Labor has presided over 12 interest rate rises. Interest rates are up, inflation is up, construction costs are up and the ambitions of Australians are being hit the hardest. The dream of a first family home is well and truly out of reach for many, and the few first home buyers that are in the market will be lucky to find a home in a price bracket that they can afford.

Under Labor, our standard of living is collapsing. Net disposable income is going backwards, and fast. Since the last election, the average $750,000 mortgage is now costing an extra $24,000 a year in repayments. But for those renting, perhaps trying to save a deposit for a home, things are also grim. Average rent has risen by 26 per cent, to an average of $580 per week. The great Australian dream is becoming unattainable, and this government has no plan to fix it. Labor simply has the wrong priorities, and they are failing to deliver for Australians.

Despite all of the government's posturing that they are here for working-class families, what they actually do is raise taxes on family cars and utes. They have decimated the skills and training sector, and they make Aussies compete for housing in a market with record-high migration levels. Labor's big Australia has grown even bigger, with migration reaching a new record, of 548,000 arrivals over the last year. This is 1,500 new arrivals every single day. Net migration is outstripping new home construction by a factor of four. Labor has broken the record for the greatest number of migrants to arrive in a 12-month period, beating its own record from the year before. Australians are struggling to find a place to live and struggling to pay the rent, and they're rightfully asking: 'What about us? Where will all these new people live? How can I compete with dozens of other people inspecting a new rental?' The government isn't focusing on delivering for Australian families. I remind the House of the Prime Minister's famous declaration to the Australian people prior to the last election: 'Labor has real, lasting plans for cheaper mortgages.' Shall we chalk that one up as another broken promise, alongside the broken promises on tax cuts and cheaper power bills? There have been two giant failed policies: the widely condemned failure of the Help to Buy scheme and the Housing Australia Future Fund that Labor tried to deliver.

Do you know who's missing from the chamber this afternoon? The Greens. An MPI on housing, and the Greens can't be bothered turning up, despite this being directly in their wheelhouse. The Greens want the government to own your home. Labor want the unions to own your home. The coalition want you to own your own home. So, with so much evidence mounting up that Labor won't get anywhere near the promise to build 1.2 million homes over the next five years, when will the housing minister admit that Labor's policies aren't working? An impending 200,000-home shortfall, confirmed by industry, is proof of yet another broken promise. At a time when Australians need leadership, certainty and a roof over their head, they're being let down by this government. Australians have seen one failed policy after another, one broken promise after another, and we're in the middle of a devastating housing crisis with a government that can't deliver a plan.

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