Nickolas Varvaris (Barton, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer outline to the House why it is essential to strengthen our foreign investment framework for residential real estate and agriculture?

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Barton for asking a question that is relevant to the Australian people and something of great interest to people in his electorate. With the Prime Minister I went with the member for Barton to Kogarah this morning where we met with potential home purchasers and met with a local real estate agent, and we were able to better understand some of the challenges that many people face right around the country in being able to purchase a home—their first home.

Importantly, it is very important that we have integrity in the foreign investment regime of Australia. It is very important to have integrity. So we have announced today, after a period of consultation with the community, that we are going to impose a civil penalty regime on people from overseas who purchase existing Australian real estate and do not get proper approval. There is also going to be a fee regime for any foreigner who wants to buy Australian residential real estate. It will be 5,000 for any purchase under $1 million and $10,000 for any foreigner who wants to buy Australian real estate between $1 million and $2 million, and then it will increase by $10,000 for every $1 million after that. The same will apply in agricultural land. We are also going to set up a register so that we can better understand who is buying what.

It is vitally important for the Australian people not only that we have laws—certainty in fact—around the foreign investment regime but also that the laws are enforced. That is hugely important. So I thought, 'Why haven't Labor done that? Why didn't Labor actually impose proper penalties? Why didn't Labor enforce the laws?' Do you know what I found? I found a press release from the member for McMahon—our old friend, 'bungling Bowen'—from 18 December 2009. That is my wedding anniversary, actually. As Assistant Treasurer, Mr Bowen said:

Temporary residents will be exempted from notification of proposed acquisitions of established residential real estate for their own residence, new residential real estate and vacant residential land. Further, the restriction preventing student visa holders from purchasing a property valued at over $300,000 will be removed.

So he was removing all the checks and balances. The problem was that his own successor, Nick Sherry, in 2010 said that that was a really bad idea from the member for McMahon. He said that the new provisions that he was announcing—in 2010—would 'mean that anyone trying to flout Australia's strict foreign investment rules will face tough new penalties that will be fully enforced'. The problem was that Labor never enforced them—not once. We are the best friends of Australian consumers. We are the best friends of households.