Josh Wilson (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Hansard source

The Albanese government is delivering the largest investment in new affordable housing since the postwar housing boom. As part of that work, we're supporting priority social and community housing projects across Fremantle, East Fremantle and Cockburn, in my electorate, through the Social Housing Accelerator. That includes projects in White Gum Valley, Treeby, Hamilton Hill, Fremantle, North Coogee, and Coolbellup.

This new housing is being complemented by a number of other key measures. For example, we've increased Commonwealth rent assistance by more than 40 per cent, we've introduced a new Commonwealth shared-equity scheme and we've provided strong incentives through the build-to-rent program and the expanded five per cent home deposit scheme for first home buyers, which will save thousands of dollars for those seeking to buy a new home. We know the availability of affordable housing has reached crisis levels, and that's why we've provided $43 billion in record funding across a range of programs to deliver more dedicated social and community housing and more support for renters and first home buyers.

The Albanese Labor government knows that household solar energy and battery storage is also making a big difference to Australia's clean energy transition, and we're leading that transition because it represents Australia's strongest and most sustainable future. We've already seen a 45 per cent increase in renewable energy generation since the election of the Albanese government, and of course about half of Australia's renewable energy actually now comes from home solar. At the beginning of the Rudd Labor government, back in 2007, only one in 1,000 homes had solar PV. But, thanks to the sustained effort of two Labor governments, now one in three Australian homes benefit from home solar, and in WA it is two in five homes. Australia has become the world leader in distributed solar energy, and now we're working to make sure that generation is matched with battery storage so we can get the maximum benefit from our abundant sunshine.

Our Cheaper Home Batteries Program has already seen more than 40,000 batteries installed, and there are nearly 10,000 registrations under the WA government's battery rebate scheme, which operates alongside our 30 per cent subsidy. The other day I was rapt to deliver on an election commitment to provide a community battery in Coogee, in my electorate. It is one of five new community batteries in WA, adding to the 13 that have already been installed. In March I was glad to join the minister for energy in announcing four new big batteries that will come online by 2027 to serve Perth and the south-west. That careful planning and investment, working with the Cook WA Labor government, has made WA the leading large battery jurisdiction in Australia and will support Western Australia becoming the first state to move out of coal-fired power generation. That work is key to reducing emissions as we tackle dangerous climate change and key to creating a cheaper, cleaner and more self-sufficient energy system as Australia achieves our potential to be a renewable energy superpower.

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