Garth Hamilton (Groom, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's been a difficult year for young Australians looking to buy or rent a home, and the threats of further interest rate rises and continued high immigration levels are doing nothing to allay those fears. For those looking to buy a home or to get into the housing market, the situation is dire. Labor's inability to tame inflation as well as other advanced economies have means that the price of everything here has gone up and your ability to save a deposit has gone down. Even when your pay check rises, high inflation means your real wages are going backwards; you're getting paid more, but you can afford less. The RBA has confirmed that inflation is now driven by domestic factors—by government decisions. When Labor increase spending by $188 billion, they fuel inflation, making it harder for you to save a deposit. And if you have a deposit, higher interest rates are making it harder to afford mortgage repayments.

For renters, the situation is just as bad. Whilst responsibility for the housing supply shortage rests with state and local governments, Labor's approach to immigration is hurting young renters. In the middle of a housing crisis, with vacancy levels in cities like Toowoomba below one per cent and new housing approvals at record lows, Labor increased immigration to an all-time high of 500,000 people in the 12 months leading up to September. Want to know why your rents keep going up? A big part of that is because the government continues to drive demand. Immigration numbers need to be reduced. This policy is hurting young Australians. Whether you're buying or renting, I ask you: are you better off today than you were when Labor came into government? Whether it's driving inflation or driving immigration, Labor have only made the situation worse. I hope that we can begin a very sensible conversation on reducing Australia's immigration levels while this housing crisis continues.