Cameron Caldwell (Fadden, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This year I committed to participate in the Raise Our Voice campaign, where young people from across my electorate have sent in speeches about issues important to them. Based on the submissions received, I have a lot of faith in the next generation of Australians. Whilst the Prime Minister and his government might not understand the severity of the housing crisis or the everyday struggles Australian families are going through, at least 13-year-old Ally, from my electorate, comprehends the damage Labor are doing. This is what Ally wrote:

My name is Ally, I'm 13 years old and attend a high school in Fadden.

By 2034, I want my community to be somewhere everyone has their own home. A place that they have a roof over their heads.

I would like the Queensland community to be a place where there are no homeless people on the street. This issue is both social and economic in nature.

Every person has the basic right to have shelter. This can be achieved if the Government acts now to address the cost-of-living crisis.

Housing must be affordable for all. A home can offer safety and dignity.

Parliament can help by identifying areas that could be redeveloped and support the building of apartments or affordable housing.

The Government has the power to make changes now, to make a better tomorrow.

Without immediate action we will keep seeing more and more homeless people on the streets.

Everyone deserves a place to call home.

Those were the words of Ally, and her closing sentence could not be truer. Every Australian should have access to affordable housing. We shouldn't have Australians living in tents because they can't afford the rent. We shouldn't have young people giving up on the dream of homeownership because saving for a deposit is too far out of reach. And we shouldn't have Australian families selling their homes because they can't keep up with their mortgages.

The skyrocketing cost of housing over the past two years under Labor has been devastating for everyone, particularly Middle Australia. This crisis affects more than just renters and buyers; it's an issue that affects the entire economy and the very fabric of our society. If the current rental crisis wasn't bad enough, Labor is now proposing to look at changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions. These changes threaten to worsen the already dire situation and put even more pressure on an already fragile housing market.

Labor fail to understand the severe impacts these changes will have on everyday mum-and-dad investors. If Labor want to bring down the cost for renters, they can't keep making life harder on the homeowners who provide these essential rental properties. Only the coalition will restore hope in the great Australian dream.