Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I move around Macquarie, I find that one subject people feel helpless about is housing, whether they are renters who can never see themselves owning their own home, older women who are fearful that once they stop working they are going to struggle just to pay rent, the teenage couch surfer who is trying to escape a home that is not safe and has no other safe place to go, or the most vulnerable in our community who do not even have a roof over their heads and are in the bush. All of these are issues that this government is not bothering to look at, it is so busy looking at itself.

So let us see the advice from those opposite on what Australians should do to get themselves into a home, in what can only be described as a feral property market in most cities, including in the Blue Mountains and Hawkesbury. Lesson 1 came from the former member for North Sydney: 'Get a good job.' Lesson 2 came from the Prime Minister: 'Get yourself some rich parents.' Lesson 3 came from the Leader of the Nationals: 'Move to the bush.' And lesson 4 came from the Assistant Treasurer: 'Get a highly paid job.' What? Looks like we are back at lesson 1! They are out of ideas.

And my children's generation looks on this with despair and sets aside the dream of ever owning their own home while this mob are in office. They have absolutely nothing to offer young Australians on housing affordability, and they reject the sensible ideas that we put forward on changing negative gearing and capital gains. They are an absolute disgrace and are letting down our next generations. (Time expired)