Sophie Scamps (Mackellar, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

Australians have long been proud to call our nation the land of the fair go, a place built on equality of opportunity, mateship and the belief that everyone deserves their fair share. For those of us who grew up in the sixties, seventies and eighties, this was central to our identity and our pride. But things have changed, and it's our young people who are being left behind, something we should all find shameful. The divide between the haves and the have-nots is widening, driven overwhelmingly by access to homeownership. Since negative gearing and capital gains tax discount were introduced as paired concessions over 20 years ago, house prices have risen at twice the rate of wages. Sydney is now the second least affordable city in the world. Young Australians are working hard, saving what they can, paying down large HECS debts and living at home for longer, yet the deposit required keeps racing ahead. For many, it has become a Sisyphean task. Negative gearing is also failing to deliver new housing supply, with seven out of eight investment loans going towards established properties. Tax-advantaged investors are simply outbidding first home buyers.

As more Australians recognise that our housing tax settings are fuelling intergenerational inequity, the appetite for reform is growing. So, with the government considering housing taxation changes ahead of the May budget, I want to highlight recent evidence from polling, surveys, submissions and a local deliberative democracy conference that show clear and strong support for reform within my electorate of Mackellar. In June 2024, I hosted the Mackellar People's Jury on Housing in partnership with the newDemocracy Foundation. Twenty-nine randomly selected Mackellar residents heard from a broad range of housing experts. Then they deliberated on their top policy recommendations. Prior to the day, we received 79 detailed submissions from Mackellar locals, which informed the jury's deliberations. The top recommendation, agreed upon by 28 of the 29 jurors, was for review and reform of Australia's housing taxation settings. I also conducted an online survey of people living in Mackellar. Of the 3,143 local respondents, a majority, 65 per cent, supported changing the capital gains tax discount, with only 27 per cent opposed to changing it. Lastly, polling by YouGov, released just this week, again backs this up, with figures showing 62 per cent of people in Mackellar supporting housing tax reform.

So the message is clear: Australians want a fair go restored, and this must include fairer housing tax settings.

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