Anne Stanley (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is a real issue in electorates like Werriwa in Australia at the moment with affordable housing. Young people trying to enter the housing market are being locked out because they just cannot afford the deposits or the loan repayments, given the amount that housing prices have risen in the last few years.

The Financial Review yesterday reported that investor demand for capital gains pushed house prices up by 2.6 per cent in February, with an annual growth of 18.4 per cent over the last year. That is the highest since 2002. Let us do the maths. That means that, for people looking to buy a house in my electorate, the amount they will have to pay has risen by an average of $20,000—that was in February. That is an extra deposit they have to find, and that is on top of the fact that their wages have not gone up in the previous few years and they are about to get a real reduction in their wages when penalty rates are reduced later in the year.

Almost a year ago, the Leader of the Opposition announced Labor's plan for affordable housing. By reforming negative gearing and capital gains tax, we can ensure our young people will be able to afford a house. It is not good enough to say that rich parents can help you. That is not a housing policy. Labor's policy to reform negative gearing and capital gains tax is.