Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

In the two minutes I have available, I want to raise some issues. This is a barbecue stopper, as Senator Cameron has pointed out, and this is an issue that affects all of us. We are concerned about our children being able to afford a home; we are concerned about people who have had a divorce or have had other change in their life circumstances and who cannot afford to get back into the housing market. It is now less affordable to get into a home. If you look at demographic surveys over a number of decades, we now know that it is something like six, seven or more times average weekly earnings to get an average home, and in Sydney it is much more. A number of years ago, a generation ago, it was about three times average weekly earnings—much more affordable.

These are big issues and they need bipartisan support; they need all parties to work together. It is not just about the quarter-acre block, which is important; but some people do want to have inner-city living. Other issues that are fundamentally important include planning controls and urban design. We face a real issue in this country in having a generation of Australians who cannot afford to get into the housing market unless they are fortunate enough to have their parents support them. That is not a just outcome or a fair outcome. There is a whole range of issues that need to be dealt with. We do need to look at stamp duty; we do need to look at negative gearing but in a considered way. There should be some real scope for negative gearing to be altered so that there is a greater emphasis on affordable new rental accommodation—so that you still drive the housing market, because the housing industry is a key driver of jobs in this country. The housing industry needs to take up jobs growth as a result of the collapse of the mining boom and the collapse of manufacturing in this country. Above all, Australians need to have good, reliable jobs in order to afford a house in the first place. I can tell you, Mr Acting Deputy President, in South Australia and Victoria with the looming collapse in manufacturing jobs, that is a real problem that we must also address.