DOCUMENTS

Senator McKENZIE (Victoria—Leader of the Nationals in the Senate) (10:17): I also rise to take note of the minister's pathetic answer to an order of the Australian Senate. In listening to Senator Pocock and Senator Bragg and as a former minister of the Crown who had to attend this chamber when required to provide answers that this chamber requested, when institutions such as the Australian Senate are disrespected and disregarded to such an effect as is currently occurring under orders for the production of documents, freedom of information requests—right across the desire for the parliament and the people to get answers from executive government about the decisions they're making on our behalf—this government fails time and time again.

It says a lot about the culture of secrecy and control that the Australian Labor Party is conducting itself with. If you thought the ALP conference was an example of command and control, they are using that exact type of behaviour here in the Australian Senate. It is not very often that the National Party, the Greens, the Liberal Party and the entire crossbench all agree, but we did, and we asked the government to come forward with the modelling that they continually quote from, that somehow the five per cent deposit scheme was going to see a tiny, infinitesimal decrease in property prices over a large period of time.

And what have we seen? We've seen the exact group of Australians—this policy was set up under the former, coalition government. This policy was set up to help first home buyers—low incomes, restricted access—so that it wouldn't have the negative impact across the housing supply chain that this policy has under Labor.

We need to get to the bottom of it and understand the modelling, because government minister after government minister saying, 'We're relying on Treasury modelling, but we're not going to show you the details,' doesn't allow us to prosecute the issues within the assumptions made et cetera that the government has based their decision on. As Senator Bragg pointed out, the Labor Party made the election promise to do this without actually having done the technical work and the impact assessment prior to coming to government.

It's almost as if Treasury have had to retrofit their advice to suit the Labor Party's election commitments. That's not how that's supposed to work. That's not how the Public Service is meant to work, so we are absolutely seeking that detail.

Treasury warned that the five per cent deposit scheme led to riskier loans and a surge in high loan-to-value lending because buyers have small buffers and are more likely to end up in negative equity. The Labor Party ministers don't seem to know what negative equity means, as we saw from Matt Thistlethwaite's embarrassing comments and their litany of economic failures and incompetence— The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT ( Senator Hodgins-May ): Senator McKenzie, please take your seat.

Minister? Senator McAllister: The senator knows that she should refer to people in the other place by their correct title. The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, please refer to people in the other place by their correct title.

Senator McKENZIE: His name is Matt Thistlethwaite, and he lives in Maroubra, in New South Wales. But, if he's now going under another name, I do apologise to the member. The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, please take your seat.

Minister? Senator McAllister: Senator Mckenzie has, in fact, just wilfully done it again. She knows that he ought to be referred to as the member for Kingsford Smith or Mr Thistlethwaite.

Senator McKENZIE: Member for Kingsford Smith. As both Treasury and the RBA have warned, loan-to-value ratios have increased at 90 per cent to 95 per cent LVR range over the past six months—and, as a result, the five per cent deposit scheme's expansion since 1 October 2025. Under the HGS, the Australian government provides a guarantee covering part of the lender's risk, in theory allowing borrowers to purchase homes with a smaller deposit without having to pay LMI.

We've been trying to get this advice from Treasury since July last year, and this government continues to ignore not just the opposition but the entire Australian Senate. They removed the means cap, which means that a couple earning in excess of $674,000 can access this scheme and that it is driving up the price of those entry-level houses and apartments which this policy was set up to help.

The Labor Party's failure on housing continues, and it is the low-to-middle income earners in this country that are paying the price. Question agreed to.