Qld housing crisis: Meaghan Scanlon grilled in fiery press conference

Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon has blamed the RBA for Queensland’s worsening housing crisis.

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Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon has conceded the state’s housing crisis is now worse eight months on from the government’s flagship summit in October – as a chorus of experts declare it’s the worst ever seen.

During a heated press conference on Monday morning, the Minister was directly asked at least seven times over more than five minutes on whether Queensland’s housing crisis was now worse.

Eventually, Ms Scanlon – who was sworn into the troubled portfolio less than two months ago – attempted to put the blame for the ballooning crisis on the RBA, saying “I think since the housing summit, you’ve seen RBA changes that have made it worse for families”.

“There are a whole range of challenges right now across the country impacting people who are renting and of course people who are trying to own a home,” she said.

Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon. Picture: Liam Kidston

“There are a whole range of cost of living pressures that are really putting a lot of pressure on households.

“I think you’d have to be living under a rock if you didn’t admit the cost of living pressures nationally are having an impact on families.”

Ms Scanlon’s comments come after The Courier-Mail’s investigation series into the state’s ongoing rental crisis, detailing the “hunger games” battle for homes.

QCOSS chief executive Aimee McVeigh and St Vincent De Paul’s chief executive Kevin Mercer told the Courier Mail that despite the high-profile housing summit launched by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk last year, more people were in severe housing stress than ever.

Ms Scanlon also blamed RBA changes for the difficulty in the market.

“I think since the housing summit, you’ve seen RBA changes that have made it worse for families. Absolutely,” she said.

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli hit out at Ms Scanlon’s refusal to acknowledge Queensland’s housing crisis had increased as “deeply disappointing”.

“We have spoken and listened to too many Queenslanders living out of their cars, too many Queenslanders who for them a tent has become their new home,” he said.

“For the government to fail to admit that it is in crisis stage, to admit that it is getting worse and to acknowledge that unless we increase supply – particularly around social housing – nothing will change is deeply disappointing.”

Mr Crisafulli has pledged the Housing Investment Fund would only be used exclusively for new construction should he become Premier next year – and called on Labor to do the same.

But Ms Scanlon rejected the idea the fund should be restricted to new builds.

“We are mostly focused on building more houses. But of course we acknowledge there’s a number of National Rental Affordability Scheme properties that were coming out of the market,” she said.

“So we made a conscious decision that we thought it was a good investment opportunity to purchase those homes. so we can keep that subsidised rent in place for people who need that support.

“But overwhelmingly, what you’ll see through the 71 proposals that are progressing is that they are overwhelmingly new homes that we will be building.”

LNP housing spokesman Tim Mander said there was “absolutely no doubt that the Queensland housing crisis has got worse since the housing summit that was held late last year”.

“The reason for that is that this government when it comes to housing is all about announcements and not about delivery,” he said.

“There’s no greater evidence for that than the media statement made over 12 months ago, where the government announced a pipeline of 1500 houses supposedly to be built out of the housing investment fund.

“To date, only 188 had been announced. And of those, 32 of those are supposed to be built at Chermside by September and not a sod has been turned on that site.

“And then yesterday we had the Housing Minister blaming everybody, but themselves – it’s the councils’ fault. It’s the developers’ fault. It’s landlords’ fault.

“Well, this government needs to look in the mirror and realise that the crisis has got worse under Labor.”