Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

No, you had your policy with the shared-equity housing scheme; we remember. Now you come in here and say, 'Talk to us. We really want to help you. But it doesn't help enough people, so we will say no. But give us an extra two months for us to go and complain about the government doing nothing on housing,' which is what you do when you go out there and pretend that you're at the negotiating table. I mean, what a load of rubbish. This has been sitting here for 290 days. You said you oppose it. You said it's going to make the problem worse, and then you say, 'Come and talk to us, and, in two months time, we will work out whether we think it's the right thing to do.' Please, honestly.

I mean, we are not suckers on this side; we get what's going on. Politics is being played. You're uncomfortable that you're helping Mr Dutton. You're very uncomfortable with that but you're making a habit of it. I mean, how many times this week have you voted with the opposition to frustrate Labor's housing program? Just how many times? We will add it up at the end of the week. We will add it up because that's what's going on here; you are enabling Mr Dutton and his team to frustrate a progressive housing agenda. That is what you are doing, and we will make you vote that way and show the rest of Australia that that's exactly what you're doing.