Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

[by video link] My question is to the Prime Minister. Last fiscal year, Hobart's median house prices increased by almost 20 per cent, and average rent rose by nearly nine per cent. Consequently, Tasmanians increasingly can't afford to purchase or even rent, the result being that many families are crammed into tiny and substandard properties as well as increasing couch surfing and homelessness. The good news, though, is that the dreadful decision by the ALP to abandon its housing tax changes perversely creates an opportunity for the parliament to develop a bipartisan response to the housing crisis. So, Prime Minister, will you seize the moment with every option on the table, including by looking afresh at negative gearing and capital gains tax?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'll ask the Minister for Housing to add to my answer. At the last election, we took on a very important program, the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme, which has been taken up and extended time and again and is getting more young Australians, in particular, into their first homes like never before. It is a proud history of the Liberal Party and, indeed, the National Party since we were first forming governments under Sir Robert Menzies. Home ownership and the promotion of home ownership is in the DNA of the coalition parties. This is something that we are forever committed to. We come forward with those types of programs to ensure that Australians can realise their ambitions for home ownership. The programs we've done to support that have indeed been very successful. In addition, through the course of the COVID pandemic, there was the HomeBuilder program, which was mocked by those opposite, who thought this was a program that shouldn't be introduced. It was one we persisted with, and it has ensured that it's got many, many Australians—thousands of Australians—into their first home. These are the policies that my government continues to pursue, because we are passionate about Australians getting into their first home and ensuring they can get that job so they can pay lower taxes and so they can save for that first home and realise their ambition. Owning your own home, getting a job, getting trained and being able to provide for your own retirement are the great goals of life in this country that the coalition government supports and our policies are supporting. I'll ask the minister to add further.

Michael Sukkar (Deakin, Liberal Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you to the Prime Minister and to the member for Clark for his question. The Prime Minister rightly points out that, between the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme, HomeBuilder and the First Home Super Saver Scheme, we actually have first home buyer levels at their highest for nearly 15 years. It's counterintuitive, I know, in the middle of a pandemic, but first home buyers are re-entering the market at the highest levels for 15 years. We are working with the member for Clark, and we have worked very constructively together. We've made additional investments in Tasmania through the Hobart City Deal, with 100 social and affordable homes. We forgave $230 million of Tasmania's historic housing debt which is being put now towards additional social and affordable houses. So whether it's helping first home buyers purchase a home or helping other Australians get secure housing, we've worked very constructively with the member for Clark and the Tasmanian government to do so. But, for six years—and the member for Clark is right to refer to Labor's housing taxes—the Labor Party ran around Australia saying the answer to all of the problems were their taxes. Now they are very quietly walking away from that. The Leader of the Opposition should apologise to Australians for misleading them for six years about their housing taxes. We all know— (Time expired)