Michael Sukkar MP

NOTHING IN THE BUDGET TO ADDRESS LABOR’S HOUSING CRISIS

THE HON MICHAEL SUKKAR MP
Shadow Minister for Social Services
Shadow Minister for NDIS
Shadow Minister for Housing
Shadow Minister for Homelessness

MEDIA RELEASE

11 May 2024

NOTHING IN THE BUDGET TO ADDRESS LABOR’S HOUSING CRISIS

Today’s housing Budget announcement is another fraud on the Australian people. No new money, no new ideas, no new homes, nothing for first home buyers, nothing for renters – just the same Labor housing crisis.

Of the so-called extra $11.3 billion, $9.3 billion is just an extension of the existing National Housing & Homelessness Agreement (NHHA), which was previously extended by the former Coalition government.

The $1 billion for crisis accommodation is merely a reheated and rehashed announcement from last year as part of the Government’s negotiations with the crossbench to pass the Housing Australia Future Fund (HAFF).

There is also a notable absence of specific support for first home buyers or initiatives aimed at significantly increasing housing supply.

The Albanese Government has dragged its heels for two years on addressing their housing crisis and Australians have had to suffer this whole time.

Since Labor came to Government we have seen record levels of migration and the construction of new homes in free fall, with overseas arrivals running at four times the rate of new home builds.

In the two years since the election, Australians are paying an extra $2,000 per month on an average mortgage; national median rents have increased by 21 per cent to $620 per week; and lending for the purchase or construction of new homes remains at a 20-year low. Australians are being locked out of the housing market.

It’s a catastrophe that the Government has confirmed there will be nothing in Budget to address or alleviate Labor’s housing crisis. With home ownership and the residential construction industry at the bottom of this Government’s priority list, Labor is clutching at straws and completely out of ideas.

Since the only housing policies delivering support to first home buyers are the housing policies Labor inherited from the former Coalition government, the Coalition remains steadfast in our commitment to continue to be the party of home ownership and first home buyers.

Ends