Qld budget 2023: $64m boost to emergency housing

The state budget will allocate $64 million to purchasing and leasing crisis accommodation sites in inner Brisbane.

Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon

The state government will boost its funding for desperate and vulnerable Queenslanders with more than $64m to increase the state’s capacity for emergency accommodation.

The new funding will be spent on purchasing and leasing crisis accommodation sites in inner Brisbane, including hotels and boarding houses.

Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon said the funds, which will be included in next week’s state budget, would support Queenslanders in critical need who were experiencing, or on the verge of, homelessness.

The pledge comes as the state’s housing crisis intensifies and follows a warning from leading service providers that about 300,000 Queenslanders are experiencing housing insecurity.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk doubled the Housing Investment Fund at last year’s housing summit, which was launched in response to a campaign by The Courier-Mail.

Ms Scanlon said “all Queenslanders should have a safe and secure roof over their head”.

“Across the country, housing pressures are having an impact, including in Queens-land,” she said.

“That’s why we’re taking action with a record investment in new social and affordable homes, and by providing more immediate support to those who need it.

“As we build new homes, we are also supporting a range of options that help put a roof over the heads of vulnerable Queenslanders sooner.”

The announcement comes after repeated assurances from Treasurer Cameron Dick that the budget will help support those who are struggling.

“The Palaszczuk government’s budget has a key focus on cost-of-living, health and housing,” he said.

“This $64.3m investment will put a roof over the heads of Queenslanders who are experiencing, or are at risk, of homelessness.

“Many of these people are leaving dangerous situations, so this funding is not just important, it is vital.”

The government has allocated $3.9bn to build social and affordable housing, which it has said will deliver 13,000 homes by 2027.

But the Queensland Council of Social Service has warned the dire need is amplifying and has repeatedly lobbied the government to boost its commitment.

“Queensland needs more than 6000 social and affordable homes built each year by the Palaszczuk government – about 10 times what is currently being built,” the peak body’s chief executive Aimee McVeigh said this week.

“This budget is a golden opportunity to change the trajectory of the current housing crisis.”