Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Labor is feeding the one-third of Australians who rent to the wolves. Every single day, people in this country are getting that dreaded call, email or text letting them know that their rent is going up by $100, $200 or $300. These aren't abstract numbers. These represent the choices that renters are being forced to make—the choice between paying their rent and buying food; the choice between turning the heat up a little bit in their house because their landlord couldn't be bothered insulating and buying a bus ticket; or the choice between cramming another person into the house and setting up the shed as a bedroom. The line between having a home and having nowhere to go home to has never been thinner. Renters are being used by Labor as a financial buffer to prop up the economy. They're the grist for the profit mill of real estate tycoons who are hoarding 50, 100 or 300 properties.

The RBA governor expects rents to continue to rise. The government cannot just sit on its hands and abandon a third of the country. Unlimited rent increases must be made illegal. Unless we stop rents from skyrocketing, no matter how much housing we build, the queues for public housing will blow out and our chances of tackling this crisis will drop to zero. The Labor government needs to treat the rental crisis with the seriousness it deserves, and it needs to show leadership by coordinating with the states to freeze rents and cap rent increases. The Greens have heard Australian renters' pleas for help, and we will continue to fight for renters.