Sen. Pauline Hanson Calls for Ban on Foreign Ownership of Australian Properties

Senator Pauline Hanson debates in the Senate at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on July 4, 2019. Tracey Nearmy/Getty Images

One Nation leader Senator Pauline Hanson has called on the federal government to ban foreigners from owning properties and reduce the immigration level to tackle the current housing crisis.

In a statement released on April 21, Hanson said that Australia should follow the lead of New Zealand and Canada.

“Many countries don’t allow foreign ownership of land or housing, but it’s open slather for foreign investors in Australia’s overheated residential property market,” Hanson said.

“New Zealand banned foreign ownership in 2018, and Canada recently introduced a two-year ban as well.”

In dealing with the properties owned by foreigners, she proposed that the federal government give the owners a 12-month grace period to sell their land or housing.

At the same time, Hanson said that the housing crisis was worsening as the federal government was going to bring in more immigrants into the country when there was already a shortage of housing.

“Housing is in extremely short supply with many thousands of Australians now struggling to buy or rent a home, but from 2023 the government will bring in 213,000 immigrants per year—more than the entire population of Hobart,” she said.

“We’re struggling—and failing—to secure accommodation for people already living in Australia, but the government is only adding to the problem with these huge numbers.”

Citing a study from the Grattan Institute, she said that 100,000 new homes needed to be built to accommodate the number of immigrants above.

In addition, she mentioned that unless state governments reformed their planning systems, the federal government should consider cutting down immigration numbers.

To reduce the demand for housing, Hanson suggested that the federal government decrease the number of immigrants to no more than 100,000 per year.

She also emphasised that the current housing crisis, both in terms of availability and affordability, required coordination and leadership at the state and federal levels.

A 'sold' real estate sign is seen outside a high-rise apartment block in the suburb Kirribilli in Sydney, Australia, on May 8, 2021. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

On the issue of unaffordable housing prices, chief economist Peter Tulip from the Sydney-based Centre for Independent Studies previously told The Epoch Times that the solution was to ease planning restrictions and allow builders to build more.

Citing the example of Japan, Tulip said that if Australia increased the supply of housing, prices would fall.

“For example, between 1990 and 2015, Japan increased its housing stock by 25 percent per adult, which reduced real housing prices by 35 percent,” he said.

“In contrast, Australia’s housing stock has struggled to match population growth, and our prices have soared.”

Meanwhile, the rental crisis in Australia is already worsening, with the national vacancy rate falling to one percent in March, the lowest level since 2006.

Vacancy rates are edging towards zero percent in the smaller capital cities and dropped below two percent in Sydney and Melbourne.

Additionally, capital city rents for houses have recorded increases of 14.7 percent, while unit rents have jumped by 11.2 percent in the past 12 months.

Housing experts stressed that Australia needs an immediate solution.