House debates

Wednesday, 15 November 2023

Statements by Members

Curtin Electorate: Housing

1:39 pm

Photo of Kate ChaneyKate Chaney (Curtin, Independent) Share this | | Hansard source

Last week, more than a hundred constituents joined our Curtin Housing Forum to discuss what it will take to achieve our agreed housing goals in Curtin: secure, long-term housing for all; incentives aligned to the provision of homes rather than assets; and social housing integrated into our communities. This is what we agreed at the forum.

A key theme that emerged was the need for vision and cooperation between all levels of government. We need a national housing policy that drives this. With rental vacancies at 0.7 per cent in WA, we need more housing supply, with well-designed, medium-density infill and a diversity of housing options. The federal government must incentivise the build-to-rent model through GST exemptions or o land tax concessions. All the experts agree that stamp duty needs to be phased out and replaced by a land tax. The WA state government must provide scale to ensure that WA gets its fair share of federal funding for social and affordable housing. Renters in WA need greater protection to provide greater stability and, at a state and local level, approval processes need to be accelerated, access to land increased and planning rules simplified, especially for well-designed, sustainable housing that can be built rapidly.

I thank all Curtin constituents who participated in this conversation. I'll take the outcomes of our Curtin housing forums and use them to continue to advocate for integrated solutions to the housing crisis in Curtin and across the country.