Peter Dutton’s $5bn plan to unlock 500,000 homes as Coalition fires up election housing wars
Peter Dutton will use a $5bn fund to unlock up to 500,000 new homes and freeze the National Construction Code for a decade to shield families from exploding red tape and energy efficiency costs.
Peter Dutton will use a $5bn infrastructure fund to unlock up to 500,000 new homes and impose a 10-year freeze on further changes to the National Construction Code under a plan to shield families from exploding costs linked to red tape and energy efficiency standards.
In a major pre-election announcement on Saturday, the Opposition Leader will seize on housing policy splits inside the Albanese government to unveil the second plank of the Coalition’s pitch to fix Australia’s housing crisis.
The centrepiece of the Coalition housing policy is a $5bn “use it or lose it” fund distributing a mix of grants and concessional loans to invest in shovel-ready infrastructure and accelerate the development of hundreds of greenfield sites across the nation.
Ahead of launching the Housing Infrastructure Program in Perth with housing spokesman Michael Sukkar and infrastructure spokeswoman Bridget McKenzie, in a joint statement Mr Dutton said the Coalition would “restore the Australian dream of home ownership”.
While not typically a federal government responsibility, the Coalition is promising to step in on a "time-limited basis” and fund enabling infrastructure including water, power, sewerage and access roads. The four-year funding scheme, available to local governments, state- and territory-owned utility providers, property developers and special purpose vehicles, “will be offered on a ‘use it or lose it’ basis”.
Mr Dutton said “this means if there is no progress on successful projects within 12 months of contracting, then the funding will be terminated”.
“We know there are hundreds of greenfield sites across the country ready for development, but progress has been stalled due to a lack of funding for essential enabling infrastructure. Our approach is focused on investing in enabling infrastructure to unlock the supply of shovel-ready new housing developments,” Mr Dutton said.
“The cheapest form of housing for first-home buyers is detached housing with backyards, and our Housing Infrastructure Program will be a catalyst for exactly this – new greenfield housing developments.”
Unlike Labor’s approach, the Coalition’s “Getting Australia Back on Track” plan will focus on state-owned utility companies rather than transferring cash directly to state and territory governments.
Industry chiefs have warned Anthony Albanese’s $32bn Homes for Australia plan is too scattergun and fails to address immediate supply shortages, with the federal government on track to fall short of its promise to build 1.2 million new, well-located homes by mid-2029.
With building approvals falling to their lowest marks in more than a decade, and migration levels hitting record highs in recent years, Mr Dutton accused the Albanese government of fuelling the housing crisis.
In response to industry reports that recent overhauls of the National Construction Code have added up to $60,000 to new home prices, Mr Dutton will announce a 10-year freeze on further changes.
“At a time of high inflation, the government’s changes to the NCC have added red tape and increased the compliance burden for new housing projects, driving up costs for purchasers,” he said.
“Stakeholders estimate the government’s recent changes to the NCC (including changes to energy efficiency standards) have added up to $60,000 to the price of a new home. The Coalition’s freeze will provide certainty to the industry and let builders get on with the job of building homes for Australians.
“We further commit to working with industry to review the government’s changes to the NCC and identify options to further reduce red tape and bring down costs for consumers.”
Mr Dutton, who will announce further housing policy measures in coming months, unveiled the first planks of the Coalition plan in his budget reply speech.
He pledged to free up more than 100,000 homes over five years by slashing migration, imposing a two-year ban on foreign investors and temporary residents purchasing existing homes, and capping the number of overseas students. The Coalition will also “ensure there are enough skilled and temporary skilled visas for those with essential skills to support our local tradies to build the homes we need”.
Mr Albanese, who came under fire this week after revelations he purchased a $4.3m clifftop home on the NSW Central Coast, is under pressure from Labor MPs to adopt a more ambitious housing plan for the election to fight the Greens and Coalition, including overhauling negative gearing and capital gains tax rules.
The government announced a fund for states and territories following a national cabinet meeting last year, with the Prime Minister announcing a pool of “performance-based funding” known as the new home bonus.
Under the agreement, the commonwealth committed to providing up to $3bn for states and territories that achieved more than their share of the 1.2 million new homes target under the National Housing Accord.
Mr Albanese also unveiled $500m payments for local and state governments to support connecting essential services for new housing developments.
Following a national cabinet meeting in May, he announced the commonwealth would provide a further $1bn in upfront funding to states and territories for enabling infrastructure to expedite housing development and new social housing supply.
However, figures released in recent months show the nation is on track to miss Labor’s 1.2 million target and reach only about 800,000 homes.
Mr Dutton’s pre-election pitch also involves cracking down on “union corruption that has contributed to driving up the costs of building by 30 per cent”, deregistering the CFMEU and restoring the ABCC.
Additional reporting: Sarah Ison
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