Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Fadden—I am sorry. Fadden is an area on the northern Gold Coast. If the member for Fadden drives a bit south, he might see all the houses and units going up on the Gold Coast. Too many people have been working very hard and trying to save, but the dream of homeownership is out of their reach. We know that. In the 1970s, it took about four times the average yearly wage to get a first home, but we're talking about 10 times now. People in my area do it tough. They don't usually have the bank of mum and dad. They're working-class and middle-class people who aspire to a better life for themselves and their kids. They're not from rich backgrounds. They have to do it tough, and they save as hard as they can. They're worried that they can't get a foothold in the market. They can't. They struggle.

Our housing commitments of $43 billion contrast directly with the $5 billion commitment of those opposite in the campaign. I've got to admit, at Bundamba State Secondary College, I was better at humanities and anything you could write an essay on. But $43 billion is a lot more than $5 billion. Those opposite really couldn't bring themselves to support our policies. They might think they sound impressive now, but they didn't vote for them. In our first term, we made significant progress. They failed to acknowledge it. Over 180,000 Australians have now bought their first home with a five per cent deposit under the Home Guarantee Scheme. Since our government was elected, 3,416 people in my local community have been able to get into homeownership with the backing of our five per cent deposit scheme, which shows just how popular it's been in Ipswich and surrounds.

In fact, earlier this year, the Home Guarantee Scheme trends and insights report said that one in three first home buyers took up the scheme in 2023-24 and that it helped a range of participants get into a home sooner. So we're expanding the scheme. For example, more than 50 per cent of eligible buyers were women and more than 50 per cent were under 30. I can distinctly recall, when standing at prepoll, people telling me, as they were coming in to the Ipswich south prepoll at Whitehill Church of Christ, that they were voting Labor because of our housing policies. That's the reason. I remember someone saying: 'Who's got the five per cent deposit? Shayne, I'm taking your how-to-vote card.' I remember debating on a number of occasions my LNP opponent who was running against me. They couldn't bring themselves to talk about housing. They had no policies. Their idea was a bit of help with the local council. But multiply $5 billion by eight and you still won't get to $43 billion.

There's a constituent of mine, Taryn Compton, who has been able to get into a home in Redbank Plains, the biggest superb in Ipswich, thanks to the scheme. She's a young mother and she's praised the scheme publicly in the local media. She recommended the scheme and credited it with making homeownership a reality for her and her family. Previously living on the Gold Coast, she saw the light and came to Ipswich, by the way. She was looking for a place that was big enough for her and her five sons. She was able to buy a home in Ipswich after learning about the scheme from her mortgage broker. Taryn is very grateful for the assistance, and she believes the program makes homeownership possible for many people who wouldn't normally be able to buy a house. On top of this, half a million homes have been built, new housing approvals are up 30 per cent, and we've got 28,000 social and affordable homes in planning or construction.

We know the key to addressing Australia's housing crisis is building more homes quickly, and that's why we're focusing on supply. Let's be clear, it's generally very hard for young people and others to get into homes. That's why, this week, the Prime Minister and the Minister for Housing announced that we're going to expand the five per cent deposit scheme, first announced in the lead-up to the federal election. It's going to be available to all first home buyers. We're going to deliver the election commitment three months earlier, starting from 1 October this year. From 1 October, every first home buyer will only need a five per cent deposit. It's going to take years off the time it takes for someone to save for a deposit. It's going to help them get into their homes much sooner.

For the average first home buyer, this will cut the time needed to save a deposit to just a few years. They won't have to pay a single dollar in mortgage insurance. There are no income limits and no limits on places, and house price caps better reflect the cost of homes where they wish to live. The expanded scheme means a first home buyer in Brisbane can purchase a $1 million home with a $50,000 deposit. They could save up to 10 years off the time it takes for them to get their deposit. They can save about $42,000 in mortgage insurance and they could pay up to $350,000 towards their own loan instead of paying rent. It's a real game-changer for young people and a vote-changer—those who are stuck in the corner opposite don't realise that. All of us who speak to young people in our communities hear about the fact that the 20 per cent deposit is the main barrier for the next generation in getting access to homeownership.

The expansion of this five per cent scheme will change lives. This will mean tens of thousands of additional Australians will get security, stability and the joy that you have when you buy your first home. I know it was the case for my wife and I when we bought our first home, in Pine Street in Flinders View. We've lived in that suburb in a number of different homes ever since we've been married. We could have done with that support. We had to save really hard, and we sure made sacrifices to get there. We're tackling housing affordability on every single front. Supply is critical. We're delivering Australia's biggest ever boost to supply, notwithstanding what those opposite may say—'Having eyes, do you not see?' Half a million homes have already been built and new housing approvals are up 30 per cent. We've got 28,000 social and affordable homes in planning or construction today.

There is a fundamental difference between the Labor Party, which believes in social and affordable houses, and the coalition. There are the Help to Buy and Home Guarantee schemes. Those opposite wouldn't support the Home Guarantee Scheme. They voted against Help to Buy. Fundamentally, the Liberal and National parties do not believe that the federal government has a role in social and affordability housing. Their idea is class conflict and class warfare. They accuse us of this all the time. When it comes to housing, their views are just the same as their views on industrial relations—always siding with the rich, never siding with the poor; never siding with the middle class, always siding with the billionaires.

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