Let’s talk tax and then we can do deal on housing, says Adam Bandt

Adam Bandt has signalled the Greens would be willing to negotiate with Labor on its signature housing bills, should the government makes changes to capital gains tax.

Greens leader Adam Bandt. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Adam Bandt has signalled the Greens would be willing to negotiate with Labor on its signature housing bills, should the government make changes to capital gains tax.

It follows Anthony Albanese this week refusing to rule out changes to negative gearing, as Labor seeks to break the stalemate over its help-to-buy legislation which has neither Coalition nor Greens support.

Mr Bandt expressed openness to the idea that adjustments to capital gains taxes on investment properties could potentially ­secure the Greens’ support for the bill, which would give 40,000 first-home buyers the chance to enter the market with smaller ­deposits through a shared-equity program.

“Capital gains tax concessions are a big part of the reason that so many renters and first-home buyers are getting locked out,” he told the ABC.

“I think it would be incredibly popular for Anthony Albanese to rein them in … We’re prepared to work with them.”

Mr Bandt said Labor and the Coalition were “attempting to blame migrants for the housing crisis”, which he said existed ­before the explosion in immigration. “I don’t accept the idea,” he said.

But Education Minister Jason Clare maintained immigration was too high and was having a negative economic impact.

“Immigration is too high, we’ve got to bring it down” he said on Sunrise.

Deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley said Labor didn’t have a plan for migration or housing and that nothing in its legislative agenda would meaningfully address the crisis.

“My question to the Prime Minister is you’re bringing in all these people … where are they going to live?” she said.

Western Australia had the highest population growth of any state, with an increase of 3.1 per cent since last year, which saw 86,443 people move there from overseas. But Sydney and Melbourne attracted the highest number of migrants, with more than 440,000 moving to Australia’s biggest cities from other parts of the world.

Concerns over migration putting stress on housing prices and rents have risen since the election, with Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth seeking on Friday to allay concerns the government wasn’t doing enough to help renters by pointing to $2000, on average, extra delivered since the election for those receiving commonwealth rent assistance. “(There’s a) 12 per cent increase in commonwealth rent assistance … today,” she said.

“That actually brings (us) to a 45 per cent increase that we have increased rent assistance since we came to government.”

Labor’s bill was delayed this week by the Coalition and Greens refusing to vote on the legislation until the next sitting fortnight.

NDIS Minister Bill Shorten said the government “was determined to support people get into housing” even in the face of “an unholy alliance” between the Greens and the Coalition.