STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Mr VENNING (Grey) (13:42): Labor has delivered a trifecta of failures on housing: fewer homes, higher rents and confidence in the market smashed. In any market, supply is the key determinant of price. Lower supply equals higher prices.

As a result of Labor's toxic taxes, their own budget is forecasting 35,000 fewer homes will be constructed. A housing crisis isn't solved through taxes. It is solved by supply and demand, something this government simply doesn't understand.

Then there is confidence—mortgage applications at Westpac have fallen 20 per cent since the budget. The warning from economists are clear: weaker mortgage demand means fewer transactions, less construction and tighter supply. A tighter market is felt hardest at the entry level.

The units and townhouses that first home buyers get will be impacted the most. Labor has made it harder and more expensive to build. The National Construction Code now runs past 2,000 pages, adding cost and complexity to every home.

The coalition wants a basic Australian building standard that keeps home safe without gold-plating them. We need faster approvals and greater use of modern construction methods. Labor's answer is higher taxes, more red tape and hoping prices will fall.

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