Marielle Smith (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I too rise to speak on this matter of urgency submitted by the Greens. To some extent I agree that it is urgent we have a discussion on housing policy in this country, because the alliance we have seen form between the Greens political party and the opposition in this chamber has had what I believe to be a disastrous impact on the ambition of this government to advance housing policy in Australia. We've seen the Greens and the opposition team up to stand in the way of the Housing Australia Future Fund, the single biggest investment in social and affordable housing in more than a decade, which the Greens party delayed for six months so they could keep campaigning on housing affordability rather than trying to fix it. We've seen this alliance team up to stand in the way of Help to Buy, a national shared equity scheme designed to help more Australians into homeownership, which the Greens have voted against in the other place and which has been delayed for four months so far. And now we're seeing this alliance of the opposition and the Greens standing in the way of more help for renters by holding up Build to Rent.

Time after time, as our government is determined to do meaningful policy reform to address housing supply in Australia, our efforts have been hampered by this alliance between the opposition and the Greens in this chamber. Time after time, as we've brought measures to increase supply to this chamber, the Greens have stood in the way, joined by the opposition. Let's be clear: the motion we have before us does not deliver another home in Australia. It does absolutely nothing to ease the cost of housing for Australians. It does absolutely nothing to assist Australians with the cost of their rent. This is just another political stunt on the floor of this place. It delivers nothing in the real world. It delivers nothing for the people in Australia who are desperately seeking action on housing supply, who are desperately seeking help with rent and who are desperately seeking to be able to afford to buy their own home.

Time and time again, the only party in this place actually bringing anything to this chamber that would make any difference to housing supply is the Australian Labor Party, and, time and time again, the major roadblock to that has been the alliance between the Greens and the Liberals and the Greens and the opposition party in this place. The fact is that, when it comes to housing, we have a supply issue in this country. That is what our government is solely determined to address.

We know this is having an impact on young Australians, in particular. It is millennials—my generation—and the younger generations that feel most let down and locked out by the issues in housing supply in Australia. It is our generation that feels like this dream, this aspiration, is beyond them. It is this generation that needs us to do something in this place to have a meaningful impact and take meaningful action on addressing supply so that they, too, can own a home, so that's not only an aspiration or a dream of their parent's generation but something they can hold.

We have the Greens political party constantly come into this place and prevent meaningful action, meaningful reform, or delay that reform, because it suits their political agenda and their political purpose of the day. But you don't get more houses in Australia through memes; you don't get more houses in Australia through motions on the floor of this place that don't deliver legislative change, that don't increase funding and that don't do anything to enact agreements made by National Cabinet that would actually deliver houses.

From the opposition's perspective, I fundamentally reject the idea that young Australians, millennial Australians and the generations that come after have to make a choice between a dignified retirement through superannuation and owning a home. I reject that containment of aspiration for millennial Australians and for gen Y Australians. It is not what their parents were told, and it's not what they should be told either. Every young Australian deserves to have the aspiration to have a safe and secure home. The Australian Labor Party is the only party in this place doing anything that will deliver that for them. The Liberals want to contain the aspirations of young Australians. The Greens think they can meet that aspiration through memes. Frankly, I believe those two positions are absurd. What is urgent is getting the Labor government's reforms on housing through this chamber. That will make a difference in housing supply.