Joanne Tran: Why Labor’s policies will be bad for young people

When I talk to my young friends about issues they care about, three come to mind: housing affordability, climate change and employment. Yet when I talk to them about solving these issues, they’re quick to embrace populist, business-bashing and socialist agendas, writes year 12 student Joanne Tran.

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When I talk to my young friends about issues they care about, three come to mind: housing affordability, climate change and employment.

Yet when I talk to them about solving these issues, they’re quick to embrace populist, business-bashing and socialist agendas that blame Baby Boomers — a generation they see as selfish. Labor have been quick to feed this sentiment.

Many Labor policies are designed to win votes from younger people despite the effects being detrimental, especially through various tax hikes that will harm the economy.

Burwood Girls High School student Joanne Tran. Picture: Dylan Robinson

Buying a house is something many young people aspire to. Labor purports to address the growing concern on this by reforming negative gearing and increasing the capital gains tax by 50 per cent.

This doesn’t address the underlying factor behind housing affordability — lack of supply. What Labor’s policy will instead do is impact the most vulnerable. An SQM Research report shows limiting negative gearing to new dwellings will cause rents to increase as it will turn investors against buying new properties.

Labor’s plan to increase the capital gains tax by 50 per cent will also see Australians subjected to a rate higher than any comparable country. The Centre for International Economics estimates halving the capital gains discount will lower GDP by $3.7 billion a year and cut construction by 3000 dwellings annually.

With a significant portion of renters being young people, Labor cannot say that their housing policies will aid young people. The effects will clearly be the opposite.

Labor’s climate policy aims for 45 per cent emissions reduction in another bid to win over young people. Independent modelling of Labor’s policy by Dr Brian Fisher showed this target will be reached through a hidden carbon tax of over $326/tonne.

Schoolchildren shout slogans during a strike and protest in March. Picture: Saeed Khan

I was only 11 during the 2013 election when I watched the Australian population vote out the Labor government in a landslide against the carbon tax. It seems ridiculous Labor would return to the same policy that was previously electoral poison.

The French almost overthrew their government after a fuel tax hike in the name of drastically reducing emissions — all while being tone-deaf to the main concerns of rising living costs for the less well-off.

French protesters almost overthrew their government over a fuel tax hike. Picture: Jeff J Mitchell

Many my age have part-time jobs or are looking for work. So when Bill Shorten talks about “giving Australians a fair go”, you would think that he would mean giving more Australians the dignity of work.

Yet Labor’s policy to increase the minimum wage and plans to overhaul the current industrial relations system will essentially turn us back to the 1980s and do the exact opposite.

Australia’s minimum wage is already the world highest and dramatically increasing it will have chilling effects on employment.

Students held a climate march in Martin Place in March. Picture: Jenny Evans

Labor’s one-size-fits-all approach will not affect the “big end of town” they claim to target, but rather small and family businesses.

Small businesses will have no choice but to cut down jobs, increasing unemployment and underemployment. This will be especially harmful in places where youth unemployment and underemployment is high, and will result in the rest shelling out more of our taxes to support those of us denied a start.

I urge everyone to look closely at the policies proposed by political parties. Don’t fall for tax hikes designed to win votes despite damaging the economy.

A bad economy will affect everyone — not just the Baby Boomers we are meant to hate.

Joanne Tran is a Year 12 student based in Sydney