16 News

The Albanese Labor Government’s Homes for Australia plan is delivering an additional $1 billion across the country to get homes built sooner.

States and territories will today be paid $1 billion collectively through the Priority Works Stream of the Housing Support Program to turbocharge construction of new homes.

This investment adds to the $500 million already under the Housing Support Program to boost housing supply.

The additional $1 billion investment can be used by states and territories to build enabling infrastructure and amenities essential for new homes, such as roads, sewers, energy, water and community infrastructure, and for new social housing.

This is one of a range of measures designed to help achieve the ambitious national target of building 1.2 million new, well-located homes over the next 5 years.

It also forms part of the $32 billion in new housing initiatives we are delivering through our Homes for Australiaplan.

States and territories will be required to provide implementation plans for the Priority Work Stream by September 2024 that will outline the specific projects this funding will deliver.

The Government’s Budget last month also included:

• Training more tradies to build the homes Australia needs with 20,000 fee-free TAFE and pre-apprenticeship places for the construction industry.
• Working with the higher education sector on new regulation to require universities to increase student accommodation, taking pressure off the rental market.
• Increasing the Government’s line of credit to Housing Australia by $3 billion.
• Providing concessional finance for community housing providers and other charities, to support delivery of 40,000 social and affordable homes under the Housing Australia Future Fund and National Housing Accord.

The Albanese Labor Government has already delivered $2 billion to states and territories through the Social Housing Accelerator to deliver around 4,000 new social homes.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese

“This funding for every state and territory will help build more homes, more quickly, in more parts of our country.

“It will build the roads, energy and water we need for new homes.

“Because building more homes will make housing more affordable whether you’re building, renting or buying.”

Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Catherine King

“Right now, our cities and towns need more homes, and we need the infrastructure that turns those homes into communities – and that’s what our government is funding.

“We are focused on constructing new homes, and supporting them with the infrastructure that delivers thriving communities, bringing down the cost of owning and renting a home and easing the cost of living.”

Minister for Housing and Homelessness Julie Collins

“Our Government is working with states and territories to help build more homes because this is the best way to address Australia’s housing challenges.

“We know we need the right infrastructure to get homes on the ground more quickly, which is exactly what this new funding will help deliver.

“This funding is just one part of our $32 billion Homes for Australia plan to help build 1.2 million homes across the country by the end of the decade.”

Funding paid by state and territory

Australian Greens Deputy Leader and Spokesperson for Higher Education, Senator Mehreen Faruqi has responded to new analysis by the National Tertiary Education Union’s (NTEU) which reveals wage theft is on track to exceed $380 million. 

Senator Mehreen Faruqi: 

“Sadly, the NTEU’s findings are no shock to any of us. Wage theft in universities is a systemic scourge that is harming staff across the country. 

“The fact that we have a university system where vice chancellor’s earn salaries exceeding $1 million a year while casual staff are robbed of hundreds of millions of dollars is obscene.

“Enough is enough. It is time for the government to fix the broken business model of the neoliberal university that only works off the back of casual and underpaid staff. This must end.

“The  government must take immediate and decisive action by requiring universities to set publicly available targets for increasing permanent employment. There should also be clearer reporting requirements with respect to employment statistics and improved rights of entry for trade unions.

“Critically, the Government must significantly increase funding for universities, and overhaul university governance to shift the balance of power from university management back to staff and students.”

The Greens have split a Government bill to ensure greater scrutiny of Labor’s plan for Build to Rent tax breaks and regulation of Buy Now, Pay Later schemes.

A Greens motion in the Senate today means the Treasury Laws Amendment (Responsible Buy Now Pay Later and Other Measures) Bill 2024 will be divided into two separate bills which will both be considered by the Economics Committee.

There is little evidence that Build to Rent will do anything to increase rental affordability. This is because property developers aim to maximise profits and in Build to Rent properties that means ensuring rents continue to rise. Mirvac has boasted about charging rents 15 -20% above market rent on their build to rent projects. This form of gentrification drives up rents for everyone in the area. In Melbourne, a Build to Rent development saw tenants evicted and then the apartments relisted with a rent hike of $185 per week. 

The current ‘build to rent’ plan will see developers able to access tax concessions from the government if they build private rental apartments where 90% can be completely unaffordable, while the other 10% have to meet a weak definition of affordability. The bill stipulates that the lease period for the private rentals must be 3 years, but includes no provisions to cap rent increases or provide protections against unfair evictions.  

The bill currently stipulates only 50 of the apartments must be available to rent, which means a developer could sit on hundreds of vacant apartments while collecting the government tax handouts. 

The legislation currently has a requirement that 10% of the apartments are “affordable”. However, “affordable” is defined in the legislation as 74.9% of market rent, with income thresholds to follow in regulation. With the price of rents so high, for many even the 10% of “affordable” apartments will be unaffordable. 

Noting these concerns and the Senate inquiry process underway, the Greens have split the Bill and will seek to negotiate with the government in return for support in the Senate. With the Greens key negotiating asks to be announced in due course. 

Greens Economic Justice Spokesperson Senator Nick McKim:

“By splitting the bill, we can give each part the attention it needs, especially the controversial Build to Rent tax breaks.”

“It will also mean we can make sure the regulation of BNPL is as robust as it needs to be.”

Greens Housing Spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather MP:

“The Greens will be announcing our demands on this bill in due course, but right now Labor’s plan boils down to giving tax handouts to property developers to build apartments almost no one will be able to afford, with no protections against unlimited rent increases. 

“What this bill proves is if Labor wanted it could impose rent caps on any developer receiving the tax handouts, but instead has chosen to allow developers to jack up the rent by as much as they want.

“Once again Labor is tinkering around the edges and announcing a policy that makes it look like they are doing something for renters, when in reality it is just a plan to give property developers more tax handouts. 

“Under this plan a developer could pocket government tax handouts, then jack up the rent by hundreds of dollars, evict tenants, and sit on hundreds of vacant apartments in an effort to further drive up market rent. 

“Tax handouts for property investors and developers helped create the housing crisis in the first place, so it is genuinely extraordinary that Labor is now proposing to give more tax handouts to property developers. 

“If Labor wanted to help renters they would coordinate a nationwide freeze and cap on rent increases, phase out the tax handouts for property investors denying millions of renters the chance to buy a home, and have the government start building rent capped apartments available to any renter that needs one.

“The Greens have a fully costed policy for a public property developer that would build 610,000 good quality homes for rent and purchase at prices people can actually afford. This would be a far better use of public money than more tax handouts for private property developers.”

With just days to go in the 2023-24 Financial Year, Labor has caved to Coalition pressure and the outcries of the small business community by passing measures that could have, and should have, been law last winter. This comes as the small business community and accountants have made clear that these delays will result in many businesses missing out on benefiting entirely come tax time.

Because of Labor’s legislative stuff up, Australian small businesses have had to contend with uncertainty around small business tax supports as insolvencies skyrocket. Labor failed to prioritise the passage of the Instant Asset Write Off and Small Business Smart Energy Incentive through the Parliament and blocked amendments for a bigger tax cut to small businesses.

In its handling of this Bill, Labor has delayed the passage of the Instant Asset Write Off legislation by months, and voted eight times against more generous tax cuts to small businesses. If elected, the Coalition will make the Instant Asset Write Off permanent to end the uncertainty and ensure small businesses pay lower, simpler, fairer taxes.

Incredibly, the Albanese Government’s much vaunted Small Business Smart Energy Incentive will only be legislated in time for three full business days before the End of Financial Year. Leading accounting body, CPA Australia, has said:

“likely the only businesses who will ultimately benefit from the measure will be those who coincidentally happened to make upgrades this year, rather than those who were incentivised to do so because of the scheme”

The Small Business Smart Energy Incentive was designed to give a tax break worth up to $20,000 to support electrification and more efficient use of energy, helping businesses save money on energy bills by electrifying their heating and cooling systems, upgrading to more efficient fridges and induction cooktops, and installing batteries and heat pumps. Purchases need to be made and installed in the 2023-24 financial year and the measure will not be extended to 2024-25 and ends on 30 June.

Deputy Leader Sussan Ley condemned the Albanese Government for failing to deliver certainty for small businesses.

“Thousands of businesses that survived a once in a century pandemic under the Coalition are going to the wall because of the economic crisis created by the Albanese Government – and now we see that even the meagre support which Labor did put on the table ranked at the very bottom of their priorities.

“I think Australians who support stronger environmental policies, including the Crossbench, would be shocked to learn hundreds of thousands of small businesses will have missed out on using this electrification incentive because of Labor’s delays.”

Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor said the delay on this legislation is another example of the mess Labor’s made of the energy system.

“Small businesses are the engine room of our economy but they’re being smashed by Labor’s high prices, bad workplace laws, and high energy bills.

“Labor cut vital programs to support small businesses to bring down their bills when they came to office, and Labor’s delay on passing this Bill leaves struggling businesses in manufacturing, hospitality, and tourism without support to invest in bringing down their power bills.

“Affordable, reliable energy is the key to a low inflation, strong growth economy. There is no future made in Australia without affordable energy. Instead, struggling businesses are facing electricity and gas prices that have risen by 18 per cent and 25 per cent since Labor came to office.

“All Labor has delivered for small businesses is a homegrown cost of doing business crisis. Only a Peter Dutton Coalition government will deliver the strong back-to-basics economic leadership to get Australia back on track.”

The Instant Asset Write Off will be a clear contrast at the election. The Coalition has committed to raising it to $30,000 and making it permanent, whereas Small Business Minister Julie Collins has ruled out Labor raising it or ensuring it is an ongoing tax support for small businesses.

Today’s monthly inflation data shows Labor’s “carefully calibrated” economic plan is failing Australians.

With headline inflation rising to 4.0% and core inflation – the RBA’s preferred measure – rose to 4.4%, Australian families and small businesses will be bracing for even more economic pain than they have already endured.

No matter how the government tries to spin this, there is no doubt from today’s data that this is Labor’s homegrown inflation crisis with domestic inflation hitting 5.2%.

Australia is at the back of the pack due to this homegrown inflation. Under Labor, Australia’s core inflation is increasing, and higher than every country in the G10, including US, UK, Euro area and Canada who have seen inflation moderating.

This is the result of a government that has spent the last two years completely distracted, with the wrong priorities and absolutely no interest in the economic prosperity of our country.

Over the last two years of Labor the prices for everyday essentials have risen:

• Food 11.4%
• Housing 14.0%
• Rents 14.2%
• Electricity 21.5%
• Gas 22.2%
• Health 11.1%
• Education 10.9%
• Financial and insurance services 16.2%

Instead of showing true economic leadership, the Albanese Labor Government continues to fail Australian families and small businesses.

Australia is in an entrenched household, consumer confidence and productivity recession, with no plan from Labor to fix the situation.

Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor said today’s inflation data is shocking but not surprising.

“This is what happens when you have a big spending Labor government that’s completely out of touch with the economic reality.

“We’ve now had four months in a row of accelerating core inflation. This will no doubt be of concern to the independent Reserve Bank.

“Despite households and business owners doing everything they can to manage their budgets and make ends meet, they are constantly being let down by a weak Prime Minister and a weak Treasurer who have no idea when it comes to the economy.

“The Albanese Labor Government’s economic plan is failing.

“Australians can’t afford more of Labor.”