Editorial: Greens‘ pie-in-the-sky demands only prolonging housing crisis

It’s an outrage that legislation that could actually help alleviate the country’s housing crisis is being held to ransom for political mileage, writes the editor.

• Double dissolution: Albo election threat

It’s an outrage that legislation that could actually help alleviate the country’s housing crisis is being held to ransom for political mileage.

That is exactly what the Greens are doing in refusing to back two pieces of legislation the Senate is considering this week: the Help to Buy and Build to Rent Bills.

The lack of affordable housing is destroying the Australian dream of owning a home, and political manoeuvring and pointscoring is not helping one little bit.

In Canberra, you have the Greens’ pig-headed push for pie-in-the-sky reforms, while in Brisbane there’s the issue of the so-called CFMEU tax, which Labor keeps defending despite evidence it is pushing up building prices.

People won’t put up with it for much longer, and with two major elections looming, political parties need to be mindful of the potential consequences.

It’s smart politics for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to get stuck into the Greens for failing to support the latest efforts to increase housing supply.

Greens leader Adam Bandt with the party’s housing spokesman Max Chandler-Mather. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen/The Australian

The government claims the bills are an important part of its plan to build 1.2 million new homes over the next five years.

The proposed Help to Buy scheme would allow up to 40,000 first-home buyers over four years to purchase a property under a shared equity scheme with the government footing up to 40 per cent of the funds for a new home and 30 per cent for an existing home.

What’s needed instead, according to the Greens, are rent freezes and caps, an end to tax concessions for property developers and a government-owned property developer to build and sell homes at just above the cost of construction.

In other words, real pie-in-the sky stuff, which is why it’s smart for Mr Albanese to lash out at the Greens, telling them to get on with it and support the government’s proposals, which, by comparison, look far more reasonable.

The Greens’ unachievable wish list makes it easy for the government to argue that it is ready to take bold action to improve housing supply if only the Greens would stop playing silly buggers.

The Greens must get out of the way, or at very least, moderate their own demands to the extent they are potentially achievable.

Rent freezes and caps might sound like a great idea, but how would you enact them in a way that is fair and equitable for all parties and doesn’t drive investors out of the rental market?

And just imagine the bureaucratic nightmare of creating a government-owned property developer from scratch to build and sell homes at just above the cost of construction – assuming a government builder could actually do the job more cheaply than a private developer.

The reality of the Australian property market is that it is completely driven by the private sector.

If the government does want to see more apartments built for the rental market, then it’s going to need tax incentives to encourage developers.

And if it wants to help more first-home buyers, then chipping in some equity is potentially a better policy choice than simply handing out first-home owner grants.

At least there’s the prospect of taxpayers getting their money back when the property is sold.

There’s a complete lack of ideas from all levels of government to solve the housing crisis.

At least Help to Buy and Build to Rent are examples of a government trying to do something to get people into their own homes.

And in the absence of anything else, the Greens should support it.

QLD NEEDS ANSWERS ON BRUCE

Infrastructure Minister Catherine King says the Bruce Highway “absolutely” could be finished – but her government still won’t tell Queenslanders when, or how.

The federal government continues to point to $10bn on the table to fix the highway.

But what Queenslanders want is a highway that is complete and meets the appropriate safety standards – without sections resembling a goat track – in the same way the Pacific and Hume highways are finished.

And we need a promise to get us there, because we can’t keep patching up the road and hoping it will hold up.

Reinstating the 80-20 funding split to finally finish the Bruce should be on the table, or there will be only one level of government to blame if it doesn’t happen.

Ms King and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese should put their skates on.

The economic importance of the highway can’t be underestimated.

And more importantly, too many families – including two this past weekend – are mourning the deaths of loved ones on a road that is clearly not fit for purpose.

Responsibility for election comment is taken by Chris Jones, corner of Mayne Rd & Campbell St, Bowen Hills, Qld 4006. Printed and published by NEWSQUEENSLAND (ACN 009 661 778). Contact details here