Adam Bandt (Melbourne, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

Imagine having the power to fix the housing and rental crisis but deciding not to use it and instead using the power of government to make it worse. That is what Labor is doing now. Imagine having the power to help every renter who is saving up a deposit to buy a home only to find that, by the time it comes to buy or to the auction, house prices have gone up so much they have to save even more. Imagine having the power to help every first homebuyer who turns up to an auction only to find that they're outbid by an investor who's getting a government subsidy.

Imagine having that power and deciding not to use it, but instead deciding to use the power of government to say, 'If you've already got four homes, we will help you with a big fat cheque to go and buy your fifth, your sixth, your seventh or your eighth'—because that is what this Labor Party is doing with the power of government. Labor is making the housing and rental crisis worse. Labor is backing unlimited rent rises, saying that there should be no limit on how much rents can go up. Labor are saying to every renter and first home buyer who is struggling to find an affordable place to live that they would rather back the wealthy property investor who turns up at an auction to go and buy multiple properties even as some people are struggling to get their first. That is what this government is doing. As a result, it is pushing people to breaking point.

I talked about how Labor's plan, which this bill is based on, involves helping wealthy property investors. I want to take a moment to explain how this scheme, supported by Labor and costing the public billions, works. At the moment, if a wealthy property investor with multiple properties turns up at an auction where there are first home buyers who've scraped and saved for a deposit, that wealthy property investor has an advantage. They have a big fat cheque from the Labor government sitting in their pocket. How does that work? It work like this. The first home buyer will bid at the auction as much as they are able to afford, as much as they have been able to save up for a deposit plus whatever they hope that they are going to be able to repay. The wealthy property investor, however, turns up at that auction and, as the first home buyer puts their hand up to bid, the wealthy property investor can outbid them time after time, knowing that no matter how high the price goes they will be able to write off any losses they make as a tax break. In other words, they can pay as much they want for the property, much more than the first home buyer is able to afford, knowing that when they go and rent it out if they made a loss they can write that off on their tax and get a tax break. The first home buyer can't do that, but the wealthy property investor can.

It's not only that; it gets worse. They know that, thanks to Labor, in a few years time, or whenever they want to, they can sell the property and they only have to pay half the tax on it. They'll get a capital gains tax discount. But someone who has made their money through working, after they've paid the cost of their massive HECS debt that has gone up thanks to Labor, after what's available having paid extraordinary grocery bills that the government won't rein in and having dealt with massive rising costs of living, doesn't get to write off the cost of the payment on their mortgage or the payment on their rent as a tax break. They have to pay the same amount of tax on their taxable income that everyone else in the country has to. Because the tax comes out before you have even met those expenditures, the tax comes out at the start, you don't get a choice. Your employer takes the tax out. You have to pay your tax. But if you have managed to make your money out of buying and selling and flipping properties, having got a nice tax break along the way, you then get another tax break thanks to Labor.

This is why, in large part, our property market is so turbocharged. The first home buyer who's struggling to get in has to scrimp and save, but they'll be competing against a wealthy property investor who knows, firstly, they can push up the price as much they want knowing that they can write off any loss as a tax dodge and, secondly, when it comes time to sell the property they'll get another tax break. The system is stacked against first home buyers and renters, and Labor is backing it. It is costing the budget. It's $15 billion going on these kinds of tax breaks—negative gearing and capital gains tax. If you add up all the other tax breaks that these wealthy property investors get, you are looking at close to $40 billion. Renters don't get that. First home buyers don't get that. The money is going to those who've already got multiple properties to go and buy even more. That is Labor's answer to the housing crisis. Then they say, 'It's okay. We're going to bring a bill to parliament to fix it,' and it continues this system of rorts that is stacked against first home buyers and renters.

Labor needs to wake up. The housing crisis and the rental crisis are breaking people. They are breaking people, and Labor is pushing rents and house prices up. Labor is backing unlimited rent rises and billions in handouts to wealthy property investors that are driving mortgages and house prices up and up and up. Labor say they want to address this, but here we are, a couple of years into their government, and Labor come along and say: 'This is the silver bullet that will fix it. This is our whole answer to the housing crisis.' It's a bill that maintains all of those wealthy tax breaks for property investors and that helps push up prices and leave 99.8 per cent of renters worse off. Labor comes in with a bill that is aimed at pushing up prices and continuing to give tax handouts to wealthy property investors.

The system at the moment is stacked against first home buyers and renters. The Greens will fight for first home buyers and renters while Labor fights for wealthy property investors. Seventy-five per cent of the members of the government have got these investment properties. The Greens are here to fight and to end these rorts that the property class are enjoying because the first home buyers and renters are suffering. You see it every day and every week as first home buyers turn up to auctions, only to be outbid by a wealthy property investor who's got a big fat cheque in their pocket thanks to Labor.

You see that every day, but what we also hear is parents who are saying they are worried that their kids will never be able to own a home in this wealthy country of ours that is Australia, even if they do the right thing. You have first home buyers and renters who say, 'I've done the right thing.' They went to TAFE. They went to university. They've studied hard. They've worked hard. They've got a good job. They've got an income. They might even have a partner who's got a good income as well. They're doing all the right things and still under Labor they can't find an affordable place to live, because Labor backs unlimited rent rises and skyrocketing house prices.

What does Labor say to all of those people who've done the right thing and done everything that they were asked to do? Labor says, 'We're going to spend between $15 billion and $40 billion helping the wealthy property investors who've already got multiple properties to go and buy even more.' That is Labor's answer to the people who are doing all the right things and that is why people are becoming increasingly angry with this government that has got enormous power, including the power to fix the housing and rental crisis. Instead Labor uses its power to make the housing and rental crisis worse.

I can't sit here in this parliament, see Labor come and say, 'This is our answer to the housing crisis: a bill that's going to push up housing prices, leave 99.8 per cent of renters worse off and continue to give billions of dollars in handouts to wealthy property investors,' and back it. That is not good enough. That does not get our support. Labor may continue fighting for wealthy property investors, but the Greens are going to fight for first home buyers and renters. We cannot support this policy that leaves people worse off while continuing to slip a big fat cheque into the pockets of people who've already got multiple properties. These massive handouts from Labor to wealthy property investors are denying millions of renters the chance to buy their own home. That cannot be supported.

These policies from the government were cooked up by a small-target opposition when they were running around not offering an alternative to Scott Morrison's prime ministership and government but instead trying to be the smallest of small targets, coming up with bandaid solutions that are all about being seen to do something to address the housing crisis rather than actually doing something. So they dreamt up this policy while they were trying to be a small-target opposition.

But the housing crisis has only got worse under Labor. Labor's housing and rental crisis is now breaking people; it is much worse now than it was even a couple of years ago. If the government can change their position on stage 3 tax cuts, under pressure from the Greens, because of changed economic circumstances and the growing crisis, then they can change their position on these tax handouts to the wealthy property investors as well. If Labor can change their position on stage 3 tax cuts, under pressure from the Greens, because of changed economic circumstances, then they can change their position on giving tax handouts to wealthy property investors that are denying millions of renters the chance to buy their own home.

We are saying very clearly to Labor: if you want our support, then start tackling capital gains tax and negative-gearing concessions, which are pushing homes out of the reach of millions of renters, cap and freeze rents, because that will give people the breathing space to deal with Labor's housing crisis, and build more public housing. You've got the power of government. Use it to make people's lives better; don't use it, Labor, to advantage wealthy property investors who've already got four, five, six, seven or eight properties. They don't need a government subsidy. It's first home buyers and renters who need help. The more that Labor continues down this road of backing the wealthy property investors and denying millions of renters the chance to buy their own home, the angrier people are going to get.

We are offering you our support as the Greens if you're willing to tackle the causes of the housing crisis and not just come in here with policies that actually leave people worse off and that are about being seen to do something rather than actually doing something—because people can see through you, Labor. They can see that you're just being seen to do something rather than actually doing something. These small-target policies won't cut it anymore. Small-target government cannot fix Australia's big problems like the housing and rental crisis. I say this: if you don't use this opportunity in the House, then we won't be supporting this bill in the House. You've got the chance, before it goes to the Senate, to start tackling these big issues of tax handouts to the wealthy, building more public housing and capping and freezing rents. But, if you choose not to, Labor—if you make 2024 the year that you continue backing wealthy property investors—then the anger from renters and first home buyers is going to continue to grow.

I hope that Labor comes to its senses and decides to tackle the housing crisis this year by working with the Greens. If it doesn't, don't be surprised if renters make their voice heard at the next election and take it out on Labor at the ballot box because Labor's backing wealthy property investors while the Greens are backing renters and first home buyers.

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