PRIVATE MEMBERS' BUSINESS

Ms JARRETT (Brisbane) (18:39): I move: That this House: (1) notes that for too long, too many Australians have felt that the housing system is stacked against them and that home ownership has been out of reach; (2) acknowledges the Government's commitment to help get more Australians into home ownership by: (a) making the expanded five per cent deposit scheme available to all Australian first home buyers; (b) opening the Help to Buy shared equity scheme, helping more low- and middle-income Australians into a home of their own; and (c) levelling the playing field for first home buyers while ensuring that investment flows to where it is most productive, including new housing supply; and (3) further acknowledges the Government's $47 billion housing agenda, which is focused on building more homes.

I'm moving this motion today because, for generations, owning your own home has been an Australian dream. It provides independence, it provides security, and it gives families an opportunity to raise their children, to put down roots and to build a better future. But, for far too long and for too many Australians, particularly young Australians, that dream has really felt increasingly out of reach.

Housing prices have risen. Rents have gone up. Even for people who work hard and save every week, getting together that deposit while paying bills is very, very difficult.

That's why this Labor government has made housing a priority, and our approach is pretty straightforward. We need to help Australians overcome the barriers to buying their own home while at the same time building more homes. One of the most significant changes that we've introduced has been the expansion of the five per cent deposit scheme.

First home buyers have been able to access the scheme with a deposit of as little as five per cent without paying costly lenders insurance. Importantly, there are no income caps, there are no limits on the number and property price caps have increased to better reflect the housing market. Of the 270,000 Australians who have now accessed the scheme, 32,000 are in Brisbane alone.

That's 32,000 people who are paying their own mortgage and not somebody else's. We also recognise and understand that, even with the five per cent deposit, a mortgage can still remain out of reach for some, and that's why we've introduced Help to Buy. Help to Buy is a shared-equity approach designed specifically for low- and middle-income earners.

Under that scheme, eligible purchasers can enter with a deposit as low as two per cent, while the Commonwealth can contribute up to 40 per cent for a new home and 30 per cent for an existing home. That means smaller deposits, and it can dramatically reduce the size of a mortgage a household needs. It also means lower repayments, and, importantly, it means people who have spent many years believing homeownership was impossible now have a genuine pathway forward.

These initiatives matter, because homeownership shouldn't be reserved for people whose parents can help them out. It shouldn't be reserved for those who are lucky enough to receive some form of inheritance. A nurse, a teacher, a childcare worker, a retail worker or a young couple starting their career should have a genuine opportunity to own their own home, too.

But helping people finance a home is only one side of the equation. We also have to build more homes, and the Labor government is throwing everything at this. We're delivering 55,000 social and affordable rental homes, and we're building 100,000 homes purely for first home buyers, with 20,000 of those in Queensland alone.

To unlock these homes, we're training more tradies, funding more infrastructure and cutting red tape, including pausing the National Construction Code and fast-tracking environmental approvals. We're investing a further $2 billion in enabling infrastructure to unlock 65,000 homes. Ultimately, Australia's housing challenge cannot be solved by one program.

We need supply, we need affordable housing and we need pathways from renting to homeownership. And behind all of this are real people. It's young people like Jack, in my electorate, who is putting money aside every week, hoping that he'll be able to get a deposit.

It's Frank and his partner, wondering whether they'll ever be able to own a home of their own. It's the single parent who wants stability for their children. It's the essential worker who serves the community and really needs to live near where they work.

For those Australians, housing policy isn't an abstract political argument. It's about their future. Labor believes governments have a role in helping make that future possible.

We can increase the supply of homes, we can help people get through the door sooner, we can remove unnecessary barriers and we can make homeownership something that ordinary Australians can aspire to. Because the Australian dream of owning your own home should not become a relic of the past; it should remain a realistic ambition today and for the next generation, as well.

Through initiatives that reduce deposit barriers, share the cost of purchasing a first home and invest in building more housing, the Albanese government is working to keep that dream alive. The Albanese government is there to support first home buyers and families and to help give them the security, the independence and the opportunity to raise their family in the community where they work and where they want to live.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Dr Haines ): Is the motion seconded? Ms France: I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.