The political divide over housing endures as the Greens challenge the new minister to reconsider the government’s policies, including a rent freeze and more public housing funding.
Greens’ housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather said he was “deeply disappointed” with the newly installed housing minister’s response to his calls to return to the negotiation table on fixes to the housing crisis.
“It demonstrates again that Labor hasn’t changed any of their failed policies on housing, all they’ve done is they’ve decided to have a new sales person,” he told Sky News on Sunday.
Clare O'Neil left the home affairs portfolio and stepped into the housing and homelessness role as part of a ministerial reshuffle last month.
Following her appointment, Chandler-Mather sent an open letter requesting she “reverse the government’s decision to refuse to negotiate with the Greens on housing” amid “one of the worst housing and rental crises in our country’s history.”
Both the Greens and the Coalition remain opposed to key pieces of government housing legislation, including the “help to buy” shared equity scheme and tax changes to incentivise build-to-rent developments.
Both parties are pushing for alternative fixes—rent controls and more social housing are favoured by the Greens, while the opposition wants to boost home ownership by allowing buyers to dip into their super.
Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt said the Greens were always looking for an excuse to stop Labor building homes.
“It took months and months to get them to agree to our Housing Australia Future Fund, which is going to be building tens of thousands of new homes. They’re currently holding up legislation in the Senate that would help renters buy their own homes and would help developers build more properties to rent,” he told Sky News on Sunday.
“What we need now is more homes rather than more political grand-standing.”
Chandler-Mather said the government was more interested in tax handouts for property developers and investors than putting money directly into building public and affordable housing.
“The new minister [Clare O'Neil] claims that she cares about people doing it tough,” he said.
“Well, walk the walk—demonstrate that you care and actually do something practical for the millions of people getting smashed by a housing crisis,” he said on Sunday.
