Michael Sukkar (Deakin, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Permanent long-term overseas arrivals are outpacing the construction of new homes at a rate of almost four to one, with 900,000 net overseas arrivals but only 265,000 building completions since Labor came to government. When will the Prime Minister admit Labor's housing crisis is out of control and Labor's fake promise to build 1.2 million homes is yet another broken promise? Why is the Prime Minister taking this country in the wrong direction?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thanks very much—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Deakin has asked his question.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

to the member for Deakin, who has asked a question which was very broad ranging at the end there. But I thank him for the tag, and I respond by saying: Australia is indeed heading in the right direction. It was heading in the wrong direction, but it's now heading in a direction which sees inflation going down. I think that's a good thing. It's heading in a direction where real wages are going up. I think that's a good thing. Productivity is increasing. I think that's a good thing. Now, instead of deficits under them, we've got surpluses. I think that's a good thing. We've seen more jobs created under this government than under any new government in Australian political history. I think that's a good thing as well.

The other thing that is a good thing is that every Australian is going to get a tax cut. That's not just some and not just politicians; it's every Australian worker, including those who are building and working on Australia's programs, such as the Social Housing Accelerator, which is seeing new public housing being built; those who are benefiting from the tax changes put in by the Treasurer to encourage the private rental market and to encourage construction in that—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Deakin is now warned.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and those Australians who will benefit from the Housing Australia Future Fund, which those opposite were completely horrified by and voted against. Of course, when it comes to the population of Australia, as the Population statement said last December, for 2031 the expected population is 600,000 below what was projected prior to the onset of the pandemic in 2019-20. We of course note the comments of the Leader of the Opposition, who said in September 2022: 'We do need an increase in the migration numbers. It's clear that the number needs to be higher.' That's what he had to say. A month later, he said: 'We need migration. We need migration'—just to really emphasise it. In his first budget reply, he boasted: 'I brought in record numbers of people, from India, China and many other countries.' The Deputy Leader of the Opposition has said, 'We know that urgently business needs a workforce, and much of that workforce needs to come from overseas.' The shadow minister, sitting next to him there, said, 'We need to get our international students back.' The hypocrisy— (Time expired)