Mark Arbib (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Social Housing and Homelessness) Share this | Hansard source

Once again, they take the low road in terms of policy. Senator Payne knows full well the amount of investment that the Gillard government is putting into social housing as part of the stimulus—the stimulus that coalition senators voted against and which right now is providing 19,300 public housing homes for people on housing waiting lists. Also, 50 per cent of those are going to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. This is the commitment that the Gillard government has to social housing. All Senator Payne has is a scare campaign.

We make absolutely no apology for putting forward a policy to put a price on carbon. It is the right thing to do and it is the right time to do it. The government of course has talked about support for households, has talked about support for effective businesses. That is something that the government will pursue and that will be discussed over time. In the meantime, while that is all being discussed and negotiated, we will reject the scare campaign of Mr Abbott, the Leader of the Opposition, and reject the scare campaign Senator Payne is running throughout the housing sector.