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

I have received a letter from the honourable the Manager of Opposition Business proposing that a definite matter of public importance be submitted to the House for discussion, namely:

This Government's inaction and policy failure creating a housing crisis for Australians.

I call upon those honourable members who approve of the proposed discussion to rise in their places.

More than the number of members required by the standing orders having risen in their places—

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

As we've seen this week, there is a litany of failures from this government. All you need to do to know that is listen to some of the questions from earlier today on the increased costs, whether it's food, whether it's gas, whether it's electricity—indeed, every form of energy—or whether it's insurance. And we highlighted today, though the Treasurer seemed a bit hazy on the numbers, that rents are up significantly, by 17 per cent. You wonder what on earth has occurred over the last couple of years, or indeed what hasn't happened over the last three years of this Labor government, to lead us to this position.

I think the most stark statistic, the most stark data point, to highlight just how hopeless this government has been on housing is the question: how many homes have been built in this country as a direct result of an Albanese government policy or program? They've been in government for 990 days. They're onto their second minister, who ruined the Home Affairs portfolio and has continued that form in the Housing portfolio. It's been 990 days. We hear in question time and in press conferences, with hard hats and hi-vis, that the Albanese government wants to build more homes. How many homes is that after 990 days? To put it into some context: Australia needs to build a home every few minutes just to keep up with the more than one million migrants that have come into Australia as a result of this government jacking up our immigration program to levels we've never seen before. We need to build homes every few minutes. So, 990 days later, what would you think? How many thousands have been built? There must be tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands. After 990 days, this government is responsible for zero homes being built in this country. Not one home has been built in Australia as a result of a policy implemented or put forward by this government.

The days of the Labor Party and their flowery words—'We want to build more homes. We want to get rents down'—mean nothing when the outcome is what it is. We've seen rents up by 17 per cent. Again—surprise, surprise—when you bring in more than half a million migrants each year, competing for a dwindling supply of stock, what's that going to do? It's going to jack up prices. That's what we saw: rents up by 17 per cent. We've seen the Labor Party commit to 1.2 million homes over five years. I thought Utopia put an end to these sorts of things, to the very Rudd-esque grand proclamations of ambition, but, on the ambition of building 1.2 million homes, how are they tracking? Where are they on the journey to 1.2 million homes? I think most fair-minded people would say, if you're around the mark, you might be 20,000, 30,000 or 40,000 homes short. That's okay. We will give you points for trying. At least you're getting close to the so-called target of 1.2 million homes. A startling piece of information was released recently which shows that, according to the Master Builders Association, the Labor Party is not going to miss their target of 1.2 million homes by a smidge. They're not going to miss by a few thousand homes or tens of thousands of homes. They're going to miss it by 375,000 homes. They're going to be lucky to build 800,000 homes in five years.

To put that into some context, in the last five years of the coalition government, more than a million homes were built. In fact, Australia has regularly built more than a million homes in a five-year period. Not only does this government have the audacity to have the worst record on homebuilding, pushing into the ground of 800,000 homes, but they still are going along and perpetuating this idea that their 1.2 million homes guarantee or promise is alive. It's not alive; it's dead in the water. They're going to miss it by nearly 400,000 homes, with rents up, with fewer homes being built and with immigration at levels we have not seen at any time in Australia's history in raw terms—and I say that as the product of migrants; I come from a migrant family. We in the coalition are the stewards of a planned migration program in this country. But you cannot bring in more than 500,000 migrants with absolutely no idea of where they're going to live. That is what has happened under this government.

Now we see no discussion from the government on first home buyers at all. They have completely waved the white flag on homeownership. They are utterly unconcerned with a generation of Australians who quite rightly expect that they will have the same opportunities for homeownership that their parents had, that their grandparents had and so on and so forth.

We hear nothing out of the government on homeownership, although we do see something from the government on support for first home buyers. We see on a regular basis the Minister for Housing spruiking this little program called the Home Guarantee Scheme, which allows first home buyers to get into their first home with a deposit of as little as five per cent. It's a fantastic policy, because, without a policy like that, first home buyers would be required to save a full 20 per cent deposit before they are able to get into a home. We are massive supporters of that policy, because—guess what? It's our policy; we legislated it. The only policy the Minister for Housing is running around the country spruiking is a policy we took to the 2019 election that those opposite called 'socialism', which was an interesting critique coming from them! They were critical of the Home Guarantee Scheme to start with and now are running around the country trying to own it as their own. We're very flattered that the government is enthusiastically adopting the Home Guarantee Scheme, which I was very proud to legislate, implement and put together as housing minister. Success does have many fathers and mothers!

Every time the housing minister spruiks that program, it's a proud coalition achievement, because the coalition is the party of homeownership in this country. She is accepting that, quite frankly, if Australians want support for first home buyers, the coalition is the only place to go. We will continue to be the place to go, including by allowing first home buyers to get access to apportion up to $50,000 of their own superannuation to put towards that deposit. We know the deposit hurdle is one of the hardest things any prospective first home buyer faces. There's nothing that kills them more when they're struggling to pay their rent and bills, live through this cost-of-living crisis from the Labor Party and save a bit of money for that deposit than looking at their super balance and seeing that a portion of it could be put towards their deposit. We'll continue to support first home buyers, whether by allowing them access to a portion of their super—which then has to go back into their super at the end to protect their retirement savings—or whether it includes our housing infrastructure program, which will build 500,000 homes around Australia by investing in enabling infrastructure.

Of course, we reaffirm our commitment that, in the end, on this side of the House, we believe every single Australian should have an opportunity for homeownership. This government has betrayed those young Australians. This government has given up on those Australians, and I can assure young Australians who want to get into their own home: we have your back, and we'll be supporting you every day between now and the election.

Ged Kearney (Cooper, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

For far too many Australians, especially younger Australians, the prospect of homeownership feels far away, and being a renter has never felt more insecure. I know that, if I'm driving around the suburbs any weekend in Melbourne, even in my electorate of Cooper, I'll see lines of young people queueing up to inspect a rental property. Much of the housing isn't adequate, either. Housing is mould infested, riddled with mice and doesn't have proper amenities like water and insulation. The rental market is so bad that you'll see tenants put up with those things. Looking at the faces of those queueing, it's apparent that the demographics of renters has changed. It's not just uni students; it's young professionals, middle-income earners and young families. Unless you've got the bank of mum and dad, you might be renting for your whole life.

Right now we've got a whole generation of Australians who are stuck in rent traps. They feel anger and despair that homeownership may never happen for them. Secure housing isn't just important for comfort and financial security. It's also important for your health. Poor housing is associated with a wide range of health conditions, including respiratory diseases like asthma, cardiovascular diseases, injuries and infectious disease, including TB, influenza and diarrhoea. It's also associated with poor mental health, which can cause physical stress to your body, especially to your nervous, cardiovascular, digestive, immune and respiratory systems.

The member who preceded me in this debate spoke very passionately about this, but the reality is the member and, indeed, those opposite ignore some pretty big facts. We know that a housing crisis doesn't just happen overnight. It creeps in like a home left to the elements. At first the cracks seem small: a loose tile here and there, a splintered floorboard and a creaky door. Then the roof begins to sag, the windows cloud with dust, and the rain seeps through, warping the very foundations of the house. Clothes are left to mould; forgotten photos lie shattered on the floor. The people who once occupied these houses are forgotten, and just as a house that is left to the elements fall apart from years of inaction, so, too, does a country's housing market that is left to rot by policies that fail to keep up with demand and that fail to support those who need it.

The coalition wax lyrical about their record. What a joke! For almost a decade, the coalition saw housing as an afterthought or really not their responsibility but rather that of the free market. They didn't have a housing minister for most of their time in office, and, even when they did, they didn't use their power to drive any sort of reform, failing to even hold a meeting of state and territory housing ministers in their last five years. To make things worse, the last coalition government left Labor with twin crises: building approvals at an almost-decade low and a skills deficit throughout the entire construction industry. They couldn't be bothered to build homes for the most vulnerable across our community, with social housing increasing by less than 10,000 homes over nine years, compared to 30,000 social homes over five years under the last Labor government.

Fundamentally, the coalition didn't think the Commonwealth government should invest in housing. 'Just let the market rip.' Impressively, this manufactured a new class divide, one between those who were able to get into the market early and those with some generational wealth, and everyone else, be it the poor, the middle-class, young professionals and young families or those fleeing domestic violence and women who have to restart after divorce. They, on that side of the House, voted against every one of our housing policies. The faux rage coming from that side is reprehensible. They don't care. They believe, if you can't afford to buy a house, it's your fault and it's not their problem to fix.

But after a house is neglected and left out in the elements to decay for the years, rendering itself uninhabitable, it can actually be returned to its former glory. It can again become a safe environment for those who need it—a please to live, a place to share with family, a place with security: a home. Just as a house can be saved, so, too, can a crisis be solved, but it takes more than a quick coat of paint. It means reinforcing the foundations with real investment in affordable and social housing, patching up broken policies that left people out in the cold and rebuilding trust that a home is more than a just an asset for wealthy investors. Piece by piece, brick by brick, a house can be made whole again, and, unlike those opposite who sat there doing nothing and let this crisis unfold, Labor is doing the long, hard work to rebuild. We're looking both short and long term and for every type of person, renter and homebuyer. We want to revive the Australian dream—the Australian dream that those opposite left to rot.

So what is Labor doing? Led by our fabulous Minister for Housing, Clare O'Neil, we're delivering smaller deposits with our five per cent deposit program and smaller mortgages under our Help to Buy shared equity scheme, which, I want to point out again, those on that side voted against. We're working with states and territories to take stress out of renting with longer five-year leases, stronger tenant protections and the power to make your place your own with pets and your own pictures on the walls. We've halved the inflation rate with two budget surpluses to help bring interest rates down and take pressure off mortgage holders. But we know the long-term fix to housing is to build more homes in our cities, our suburbs and our regions. That's why we've started our big housing build—the largest in 70 years—with our $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund. We're building social housing, including for victims of domestic violence. We're training more tradies, building more infrastructure and directly investing in homes ourselves, as governments should do in a crisis. We're making sure there are affordable rentals for frontline workers and making repairs for maintenance and improvements to remote Indigenous housing. We're making sure that there is crisis and transitional housing for families fleeing domestic violence and housing for specialist services for our veterans at risk of homelessness.

I know that not everyone can feel it yet, but these changes are big. I think they paint a very stark picture between the coalition and us in this election, and Australians know it. They know that we do not want to go backwards to where only those with rich parents can afford to avoid living in a mould-infested apartment. We want prosperity and housing for all. We want the best things that come with having a house over your head and somewhere to call home, such as security and all those things that a house can provide. One of the best things this government is doing to make sure that Australians can get into a house and call it their own for their families is to see wages in this country go up for every single worker. It's because of our policies and because we have a fabulous Treasurer that we are seeing inflation going down. And, incredibly importantly, we are seeing unemployment dropping. Unemployment is low. If you think of these three things together—people getting jobs, people with decent wages and inflation going down—it's a recipe to ensure that people in this country can absolutely afford to buy a home and live in peace and security.

Julian Leeser (Berowra, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Homeownership is one of those issues that speaks to the very heart of the Australian dream—the dream of having a place to call your own. It's a source of pride. It provides safety and security for individuals and families and acts as the primary asset for family wealth creation. Under the Albanese government, that dream has now slipped out of reach. The minister gave us lots of poetry but not much policy. Labor's inaction and policy failures have created a housing crisis that's punishing young Australians. It's punishing low- and middle-income families, and it's punishing hardworking Australians who are striving to get ahead.

The statistics speak for themselves. Analysis from CoreLogic reveals that under the Albanese government, in my home city of Sydney, it now takes a year longer to save for a first home deposit than under the former coalition government. New dwelling numbers have also gone backwards under this government. In 2018, over 210,000 new dwellings were built in a single year. To reach that level again, we need to increase construction by 20 per cent. Labor's target of 1.2 million homes in five years has been criticised by housing experts, who agree with the coalition's predictions of a shortfall of at least 400,000 homes, and by Labor Premier Chris Minns, who says they just won't get there. This number highlights the complete failure of the Albanese government.

Under the former coalition government, there were more than one million commencements during the last five calendar years, from 2017 to 2021. At the same time, Labor's reckless policies on migration have further strained our already struggling housing market. Over the past two years, we've seen a net increase of almost one million new arrivals, with 446,000 additional migrants arriving in Australia in the 2023-24 financial year alone. Now, I'm for migration. We all know that migrants have enriched Australia and enriched our culture, but we can't keep bringing people into this country that we can't house. Labor has overshot its migration target, this time by an additional 50,600 migrants, and it has failed to keep the housing supply up. Not only does the Prime Minister have to explain where these people will live; the migration increase has significantly driven up the cost of housing and rent, further increasing inflation as Australians endure cost-of-living pain.

This government has no real plan to support homeownership, no real plan to help renters and no real plan to build the homes Australia desperately needs. But the housing crisis shouldn't just be viewed as statistics or an abstract policy failure. For millions of Australians who find themselves locked out of homeownership or trapped in rental stress, it's a daily struggle. That's why the coalition will act immediately to fix the housing crisis.

Over the past two years the coalition has been consulting with hundreds of local councils across Australia on the current housing constraints and practical ways to overcome these challenges. We know that one of the major obstacles for housing projects is the lack of funding for critical enabling infrastructure. Therefore we will, on a time limited basis, unlock necessary new housing supply and keep the Australian dream alive. We'll do this by investing in shovel-ready infrastructure, committing $5 billion to get these projects moving, and unlocking more than half a million homes delivered through a mixture of concessional loans and grants. We'll further rebalance the migration scheme in Australia by reducing the permanent migration program by 25 per cent over this period and implementing a two-year ban on foreign investors and temporary residents purchasing existing homes. Migration and foreign ownership outpacing the construction of new homes can no longer continue if we want to give Australians a chance of owning their own home.

The coalition has recommitted to assisting first home buyers, allowing them to access up to $50,000 of their superannuation through the Super Home Buyer Scheme. This would allow a first home buyer's super to work for them, achieving the best of both worlds—homeownership and retirement security. It's real solutions like this that have the ability to give Australians back the dream of homeownership.

In my electorate of Berowra, the coalition's policy will provide individuals with the opportunity to purchase a $515,000 unit in Epping or a $540,000 apartment in Hornsby that otherwise may be out of reach as they try to juggle the increasing rents and energy prices seen under this government. Countless times I've heard from families in my community who are worried about homeownership, including parents watching their children moving out of the area and, in some cases, out of Sydney due to being locked out of the housing market. This isn't acceptable. As I've said, only the coalition has a plan to bring the Australian dream back into reach. It's only the coalition that will stand up for families in Berowra and across Australia who dream of homeownership but feel like it's slipping out of reach, and it's only the coalition who will take action where Labor has failed. Only the coalition government will allow people to realise their dreams of homeownership.

Daniel Mulino (Fraser, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There are some problems that this place deals with that are complex and require special, concerted effort, and housing is one of those. It's a problem with supply-and-demand issues. It's a problem with workforce challenges. It's a problem which requires action at all levels of government and in the private sector. There are some problems that this place deals with that are long lasting and that evolve over long periods of time, as the first speaker on this side pointed out. And, again, housing is one of those.

Housing has characteristics that have evolved over decades—decades of inaction at various levels of government, decades of underinvestment and decades of supply-side challenges. When we deal with problems of this nature, the Australian public expects serious responses from this chamber, serious responses from the national parliament and bipartisan approaches. What I'm going to argue is that, when one looks at the two sides of this chamber and at the two offerings that are going to be put forward at the next election, one of them is a serious, genuine policy offering which we've seen evolve over the last three years, and the other is cynical politics. One is based on serious policy development, and the other is based on non-serious, populist offerings that no serious commentators support.

Let me first look at the issue of those that are most challenged in the current market—first home buyers. This government has put forward targeted schemes like Help to Buy and the Home Guarantee Scheme, which help first home buyers pull together a house purchase even when they're struggling to pull together the deposit and which put first home buyers in a better position even when they don't have enough equity to put the transaction together. These are policy offerings which will assist hundreds of thousands of households over the next three years. What we have from those opposite is cynical politics, having voted against every single program that this government has put forward.

In addition to that, what we have been offered from those opposite are non-serious, cynical, populist politics which are not supported by any serious commentators. The early release of superannuation, which is their central offering to help first home buyers, isn't supported by a single serious macroeconomist. It will not do a single thing to build an extra home, and it will only bid up the price of existing homes in a way that will not help first home buyers at all. In addition to that, it will undermine one of the key policy rationales of our superannuation system, preservation, in a way that will make it all the more difficult to satisfy our long-term attempts to deal with the ageing of our society. Those opposite don't have a serious offering and, in a cynical, political way, have stood in the way of everything that this government has put forward.

Let's look at other key supply-side measures, such as the Housing Australia Future Fund. We have invested $32 billion of funds in a range of measures, such as the Social Housing Accelerator and all of the investments in the last mile. All of these measures are opposed by those opposite, who are delaying the implementation of critical schemes which have been absolutely important to increasing supply of housing in this country. At the same time, those opposite are intimating that they're going to be cutting public sector resources all over the place, but in an incredibly dishonest and cynical way. They're not saying where they're going to cut. They're intimating that the Housing Australia Future Fund is going to be hollowed out and intimating that all sorts of other schemes to support housing supply are going to be cut, but without giving any details. So they've blocked the passage of our legislation and now, at the next election, are strongly intimating that they're going to be cutting further funds.

Another critical supply-side measure from this side has been free TAFE for those wanting to enter the trades. Thirty-five thousand people entering the trades is a key supply-side measure, with all of the key players in this sector agreeing that workforce issues over the last few decades have been a key hindrance. Those opposite, again, reject that measure and attack any measure to help reduce the barriers to participation in TAFE by saying, 'If you don't pay for something, you don't value it.' Those opposite, with this complex issue, have offered nothing. (Time expired)

Jenny Ware (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was present in the chamber just now when I heard the member for Fraser say a number of, frankly, quite outrageous statements. He has described our housing policies, which we have released well and truly before the next election, as 'populist politics'. I say that—and I'm going to talk about our policies—this is a very interesting statement, coming from a member of a government that has completely failed on housing policy. If nothing else, the failure on housing policy completely demonstrates that the Albanese Labor government stands for nothing and has not addressed any of the crucial elements that really affect and matter in the lives of Australians. Homeownership is one of those. If, over on that side, they were serious about really addressing housing affordability, they would have looked at our policies and agreed to them, or at least had a bipartisan approach, as the member for Fraser has just said.

I know that there are many members of this government—and I have been in this chamber when they've said it—particularly the female members, who have said how important it is that we get housing for older women, for women who are fleeing domestic violence or for women who, for example, are going through a grey divorce. These are women who have never earnt a lot of money in their lives. They get divorced, often in their 50s or 60s, and end up in a divorce settlement, often with a matrimonial home and a large mortgage and a very small superannuation pool, but their former partner walks away with significantly more superannuation. We know that because there are many members—and I'm one of them—in this place who have spoken, over and over again, about the complete gender inequity in superannuation. So I know that this is an area of real interest and real concern to those on the other side. It really is.

I also note that the Prime Minister has been very proud of the fact that he grew up in social housing with a single mother. He has now risen to be the leader of our country and, as a result, has been able to afford his own home. I commend that. That is the exact example of what he, as the Prime Minister, should be aspiring to for all Australians. That is certainly what we on this side of the House aspire to—superannuation being released to assist with first home buyers. We've made it very clear that it will be capped at $50,000 and that, if the house is sold, it is then repaid into superannuation. We are committed to superannuation; since it was introduced by a Labor government back in the late eighties or early nineties, we on this side of the House have always been committed to compulsory superannuation. However, at the end of the day, that superannuation is still our money; it's not the government's money.

Women who are fleeing domestic violence and women who have ended up in divorces where they have significantly smaller assets than their husbands—we all know those women; those women are our friends, those women live in our electorates and those women have been talking to me when I've been out doorknocking—will be able to access some superannuation. They will be able to access up to $300,000, if they have it. Remember that most Australian women don't have $300,000 in their superannuation accounts, but they will be able to access that money to purchase a home, even if it is not the first home that they've ever purchased in their lives. In that way, we are demonstrating that we are absolutely committed in relation to the inequity that is there for women, particularly older women, with those lower superannuation bases. And I'll just say this, very quickly, on that issue: with superannuation today, self-managed funds can invest in commercial property and they can invest in retail property. Why can't we use our own money to invest in a house to live in?

Sally Sitou (Reid, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Having been in this House for just over 2½ years now, I know that much of the work that happens here is really important and very serious but also that much of it is performative. And that is what we have had here in this debate. Housing affordability is certainly a matter of public importance, but this debate is purely performative. We know that. Those opposite not only failed to help with housing affordability when they were in government for nine years but also failed to back key measures that we've introduced to help with housing affordability. If you take that as a whole—they failed to act when they were in government and failed to back bills that we've introduced to help with housing affordability—then what can we surmise about this debate? It is purely performative. They are not here to have a serious discussion about what we should be doing to help with housing and affordability.

Let's look at the two policies that they are bringing forward: one is to assist in providing additional funding for supporting infrastructure—no additional funds to build the homes, mind you—and the other is to get people to raid their super funds, their retirement incomes. These are the two policies that they've brought forward. As with all other things from those opposite, they always sit on their hands when there's an opportunity to actually do something. With the cost of living, did they back a tax cut for all Australian taxpayers? No. Did they back cheaper energy bills? No. What have they backed? Lunches for bosses. And we are reminded of the mantra that they use over and over again: if you don't pay for it, you don't value it. They've demonstrated, with their actions when they were in government for nine years and their actions now, that they also don't value housing affordability—helping Australians to get into homes. They didn't back our $10 billion housing affordability future fund.

I note that the previous member talked about homelessness for women, particularly older women. I'll tell you what will help those older women into homes. It's the Housing Australia Future Fund. That fund will be building 30,000 homes, and 4,000 of those homes are going to be set aside for vulnerable women. That is the practical help you can provide as a government—actually building homes for vulnerable older women.

We know that there is a housing affordability crisis. I know it acutely because I live in Sydney. Sydney is considered the second-least affordable housing market in the world, behind Hong Kong. It's a challenge for Sydneysiders. I hear about in my electorate. But it hasn't always been this way, so we have to ask the question: how did we get here? We got here not because of the actions of this government; we got here because there has been a failure by coalition governments at the federal and state levels to take this problem seriously. Housing unaffordability does not spring up overnight. It brews and brews for years and years. Part of the problem is supply. Part of the problem is getting more people to build those homes. Part of the problem is getting appropriate infrastructure. But it is, unfortunately, a perfect storm that has been brewing for a really long time.

We have, unfortunately, had a coalition government that has been completely uninterested in trying to solve it. I'm glad that I'm now part of an Albanese Labor government that is addressing it head-on. While the coalition has spent this entire parliament blocking the Labor government's plan to get thousands of Australians into their own homes, Labor has a simple belief, and that is that ordinary Australians should be able to own their own homes. We're helping more people buy their first homes with smaller deposits through the Home Guarantee Scheme and with smaller mortgages under our Help To Buy Scheme. These programs will help thousands of people get into their own homes sooner. The key part of this is to build more homes. As I said, that is our No. 1 priority—to build more homes.

Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I've just heard members opposite pledge that they want to build more homes in Australia. Talk is cheap. You can have the best policy in the world, but unless you provide the money and the approvals, you'll never build a house. I will give you three examples of how committed Labor really is to building homes, particularly in the regions.

The first one is the Valla Urban Growth Area. The overview is that 700 residential dwellings, 150 industrial lots and 100 business premises are planned. A school and a retirement village are included in the plans. It's ready to go. It's expected to support up to 1,500 jobs and boost local employment opportunities. There's $17 million allocated by Nambucca Valley Council. There's $10 million that has been allocated by previous federal and state coalition governments. There will be the creation of a self-sufficient community with residential, commercial and industrial zones; the development of a new town centre and shop services; employment opportunities; and provision of recreational spaces, both passive and active, with a natural environment. How do you think it went under Labor's Regional Precincts and Partnership Program? It was rejected. That's 700 homes rejected. Availability of rentals in this area is less than one per cent, and Labor say, 'We want to build homes.' Sorry—rejected.

The second example is in Coffs Harbour, and I'm sure Labor will support this because it goes towards social and affordable housing. The Argyll estate was initially designed to provide affordable housing options in Coffs Harbour, addressing housing shortages and supporting community growth. The redevelopment aimed to transform the estate into a mixed-use residential community, integrating social and private housing to meet diverse housing demands. The estate was included under housing programs jointly funded by the federal and state governments, aimed at boosting social housing stock. There was $40 million allocated for the redevelopment of the Argyll estate, focusing on increasing social housing units while integrating modern infrastructure. The redevelopment plans initially targeted the creation of nearly 500 homes. What do you think happened when Labor got into federal government and state government? What do you think happened to that $40 million funding? It got swept. The project was canned.

They are two projects in my electorate that have been canned by Labor—1,200 homes. That is Labor's commitment to building homes in the regions. How's that for commitment? You can have as much policy as you like, and words are cheap if you don't follow through.

The third one—and I find this the most offensive one—is Watson Place, Bellingen. There was $5 million committed by the coalition state government and $5 million committed by the coalition federal government. An old rundown aged-care facility was committed by the Royal Freemasons Benevolent Institution. They planned 40 one-bedroom and two-bedroom units for women over 55 suffering domestic violence or homelessness. Because of COVID and costs going up, because of the increases, they needed an additional $6 million to build those 40 one-bedroom and two-bedroom units. We asked. What was the response?

Tony Pasin (Barker, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Surely yes.

Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, you'd think surely yes. It was: 'No. We will not give you a measly $6 million to go towards providing a roof over the heads of women over 55 facing homelessness and domestic violence.' So what happened? They had to reduce it from 40 to 23. There are 17 women over the age of 55 out there at the moment who don't have a roof over their heads because of Labor's policy.

Zaneta Mascarenhas (Swan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Everyone should have access to a house. That is true, and I think that that's something everyone on both sides of this House recognises. One of the things you have to also have a look at is megatrends, the way that things happen over a period of time, and how long it takes to change some megatrends. The truth is the coalition government weren't really interested in housing. In fact, I think it was the Abbott government who got rid of the housing minister, because the fundamental thing is they don't really care about housing.

The thing I would say is that when the Albanese government took over we stepped into, I'm going to say, multiple crises happening at once. We have a plan, and the plan will take time, but this is something that we're actively working on. This is something that will actually work. This is something the federal government should be looking at.

There are so many reasons why we are in this situation at the moment. If we have a look at the policy details that have been released by the coalition, I think the member for Reid was saying not one single dollar will go from the coalition to actually build a house. I'm sorry, but Australians are pretty clever, and they know if a federal government is serious about housing they're actually going to put dollars into bricks and mortar, as opposed to this other made-up stuff where you've got to do it out of your retirement funds, which is—

Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Crazy talk!

Zaneta Mascarenhas (Swan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Exactly—crazy talk. Last year, I remember, the member for Deakin said that if he were the federal housing minister he would 'cut out state governments where possible within the constraints of the Constitution'. Cut them out, not work with them to find a solution—that's his plan. Let's not forget what else he said. In 2021, when he was actually the housing minister, he said it was not up to him to fix the housing crisis.

A government member: Oh! What was he doing?

Oh! It sounds like a theme: 'not my job, not my job'. Instead, he placed the responsibility on the state governments. So which is it? Are the states in or out? Is it his job, is it not his job—who knows? His position is muddled, just like this motion. What is clear, however, is that we have a federal shadow housing minister who's more interested in creating obstacles than in building homes—a blocker, not a builder. Do you know what? I do like blocks, but I don't like blockers. Because of the Liberals' failed policies, too many Australians are now facing serious housing challenges. What's his response? He wants to cut the states out of the solution. Let's not forget that those opposite didn't even have a dedicated housing minister for most of their time in office.

Labor are different. We have built a strong partnership with the states. We have convened eight ministerial councils with the state and territory housing ministers. We have delivered real, tangible solutions. We are investing in 55,000 social and affordable homes, more than the previous government built during their entire time in office. In Western Australia, 1,800 new homes will be built in communities in my electorate of Swan—in Redcliffe, Rivervale and Cannington. We're taking action because we know we achieve more by working together. We are doing what we were elected to do: build homes and build them quickly. We are building them in more parts of the country so that more Australians can achieve their dream of homeownership.

We're working in partnership with the states and territories, not fostering division and blame—although I know that those opposite are totally addicted to division—because what actually matters is building more homes, not political pointscoring. The member for Deakin may be an expert in the blame game, but he's shown that he's not an expert in housing policy. In contrast, we are fixing the mess. We have increased Commonwealth rent assistance and we have an ambitious and historic reform plan—the most significant changes to housing policy in a generation. Right now, Australia needs Labor. We back battlers.

Simon Kennedy (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Swan said Labor has a plan and also talked about accountability. Well, right now we've got a Labor federal government and almost wall-to-wall Labor governments across our states, and, sadly, a plan is not good enough for everyday Australians. Australians are sick of plans. They want and need action.

I'm reminded of what Mike Tyson said: 'Everyone's got a plan until they're punched in the face.' The Australian economy has punched this government squarely in the face. Why? Once, more than half of all adults under 29 owned homes in Australia—half, 50 per cent. That number has now plummeted to less than 30 per cent. This government's inaction now has Australians fearing for their future. It has Australians fearing for their children's future. We have a crisis that has stolen hope from Australians, a crisis that's leading Australians to skip meals.

Of course Aussies want to own their homes—even renters. Even though we're addicted to the build-to-rent scheme, 94 per cent of renters aspire to owning their own home. So why aren't we delivering what these people want? Instead of delivering them hopeless build-to-rent schemes, why don't we give them pathways to actually purchasing their own homes?

So what's gone wrong? House prices have not kept up with wages. In Cook I hear heartbreaking stories all the time. Just last month I heard a story of two teachers who could no longer afford to live in my electorate and so were packing up and moving their family. They're moving away from their parents. It's not funny. I see people smiling over there. This is not funny. They were not laughing when they came to see me about having to move away from their parents and their jobs because they couldn't afford their home loan.

Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Hasluck!

Simon Kennedy (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No-one in my electorate is laughing about that, and I'd encourage the member for Hasluck not to laugh either.

This problem has only got worse under your government. Since Anthony Albanese came to power, the average cost of a mortgage—

Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Member for Cook, just a moment. If you direct your comments through me and the member for Hasluck stops the interjections, we might actually get this debate going.

Simon Kennedy (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd love for the interjections to stop. The problem has got worse since Mr Albanese came to government. The average mortgage has increased $50,000 a year. Rents are 17 per cent up. They're paying 17 per cent more, yet they want to own their own home. House prices are up by double digits as well, and the inflationary spending of this government is keeping interest rates high, piling on the pain to everyday Aussies. Housing is up 13.5 per cent, but what has happened to real disposable income? That family that came to see me about moving to WA because they could no longer afford their mortgage—well, their disposable income is down nine per cent. That means they've got nine per cent less to spend on groceries, nine per cent less to spend on food, nine per cent less to spend on insurance. They've got nine per cent less to spend, yet food is up 12 per cent, insurance is up 17 per cent and gas is up 34 per cent.

In the middle of a housing crisis, when not enough Aussies can get to own homes, what has happened? We have abolished the Australian Building and Construction Commission. And what's happened to construction costs? They are sky high. We've let 1.6 million people into Australia in the middle of a housing crisis. We have the fastest growth in immigration since 1952. According to the Master Builders Association, there are 3,605 small construction businesses in my electorate who are struggling, many hitting the wall. In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, in the middle of a housing crisis, when we should be building more, these construction companies are going broke.

The coalition has a plan to address this national crisis, and it will: super for housing. We will let first home buyers put $50,000 of their money towards their own home. Yes, it's their money. I know it's news to those across the floor, but super is their money, and we'll let them put it towards their homes. We'll put a ban on foreign investors and temporary residents purchasing homes in Australia. We will reduce the permanent migration program by 25 per cent because we know that will reduce demand for housing. Do those on the other side want to keep that going up? Do you want those people to outcompete Australians for homes? I assume that's a yes. Not only will we do that; we will also ensure we have enough temporary skilled visas and workers to come in and build these homes. Lastly, we will invest $5 billion to unlock 500,000 new homes to get this country moving again.

Tania Lawrence (Hasluck, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Deakin, the member for Dickson and the member for Cook must all think Australian voters were born yesterday. They come into this place and expect Australians to completely forget their complicity in the creation of all the policy mess that this Albanese Labor government has been working steadfastly to fix. In housing there was a decade of lost opportunity. If Labor had been in office in those lost years, we might not have any housing crisis today. In 2013 we had a housing and homelessness minister—a full minister in cabinet. Then the Liberals and Nationals came into the office and, unfortunately, demonstrated their absolute, utter lack of commitment to housing and their lack of commitment to addressing homelessness. They demonstrated how little they actually cared by not even having a minister—not even an assistant minister, not even an envoy. No-one held on to housing in the Liberal and National parties while they were in government from 2013. They did not even in 2014. In 2015, no, they still didn't think it was important. They didn't even in 2016. Not even in 2017 did they think we needed to have regard to housing and homelessness. They didn't even in 2018.

Only towards the end did they actually start having regard to it, because the research was confronting. But they still didn't care. Had the coalition thought, in 2019, when the member for Deakin assumed that portfolio, that something akin to having a housing Australia future fund, a help-to-buy scheme or efforts to train more tradies would actually help to address the construction workflows to build more houses—perhaps if he had actually thought about it then and done something—we wouldn't be in the position that we are today. But he didn't. They didn't give it any regard or thought. Consequently, they ripped out $3 billion from TAFE, from the educational institutions that actually create the skill pathways to housing—the trades and skills needed to ensure people have a roof over their head. They ripped $3 billion from TAFE. Imagine how long it takes to build a house today because of the lack of skilled workers in the workplace.

Labor recognised that, and we acted on it very early on. We have yet again passed more legislation to put that investment into TAFE to ensure that we have the trades that are needed to build our homes for the future. Already 32,000 people have signed up for the free TAFE places, and there has been a 32 per cent increase in people working to complete their apprenticeships. But houses take time. I don't know where the member for Cook or the member for Deakin lives, but I know that where I live, in Hasluck, it can take three years to build a home.

We passed the Housing Australia Future Fund Act in the middle of 2023. Unfortunately, the Liberals cared so little about this matter that they continued to block it, but we finally got it passed. I don't think we're going to get a house built in six months, sadly, but investments are coming through from that. We have $32 billion locked away in order to make sure there's a housing future for all. There's $19 billion specifically for housing in the middle of a housing crisis. We've helped 140,000 people with lower mortgage deposits, double what the former government was ever able to achieve. We are investing in 55,000 social and affordable homes, including in an area of Bassendean right opposite the train station. It's going to be super accessible, mixed-residential housing.

These are the kinds of investments and opportunities that we see for everyone, not just the few that are focused on investment portfolios. I note that the member for Dixon is quickly selling off his private portfolio and shoving it into a trust instead, so he can avoid scrutiny. He's not about first home buyers. That's why they're telling people to call on their super. Young people taking $50,000 out of their super? You show me a 20-year-old who's got $50,000 in superannuation, and then we can start talking about what a serious policy looks like. It's absolute nonsense to ask young people to pinch from Peter to pay Paul, robbing their future prospects to be able to get a roof over their heads today.

We're not about that. This party is about fairness. We're about accessibility and affordability in these areas of policy, working to ensure housing is available to all Australians, not just a few. To this end, because of the importance of building homes, we are granting visas for construction workers. Unlike the member for Cook, we know that this is going to take a collaborative effort, thanks to the mess that they left this country with.

Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time for this discussion has now concluded.