Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Yesterday the government's top economic adviser warned Australians that there is a housing bubble in Sydney and parts of Melbourne. Does the Prime Minister agree with his top economic adviser that there is a housing bubble in Sydney and parts of Melbourne?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Millions of Australians have borrowed money to buy a house—millions of Australians have mortgages—and the last thing they want to see is a decline in the value of their most important asset. That is the thing. Why should members opposite be talking down our economy? Why should members opposite be saying that somehow people's houses are worth too much? That is what the Leader of the Opposition is saying. He is saying that people's houses are worth too much. This is someone who wants to be the Prime Minister of Australia, and he wants your house to be worth less. The Leader of the Opposition wants your house to be worth less.

Honourable Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is too much noise on my left, and on my right.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This bloke has wrecked a lot of things, but what I do not want him to do is to wreck the housing market of Australia. Do not trust this man with your house price, do not trust this man with your superannuation, do not trust this man with your future and do not trust this man with the government of Australia. What he wants is for your house to be worth less. Just imagine how you would go paying back your mortgage when your house is worth less.

Honourable members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is too much noise!

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just imagine how you would go if you had to repay your mortgage if your house was not worth what it was worth when you bought it. That is the spectre that this leader of the opposition is now holding out to the people of Australia. He is not just saying the carbon tax comes back, he is not just saying the people smugglers come back, he is not just saying the superannuation tax comes on, but he wants your house to be worth less. Really and truly, this leader of the opposition is going from bad to worse.

Honourable members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is far too much noise. We will have some silence for the question from the member for Longman.