|
representatives vote 2024-02-29#1
Edited by
mackay staff
on
2024-03-07 19:02:35
|
Title
Motions — Housing- Motions - Housing - Let another vote take place
Description
<p class="speaker">Andrew Gee</p><p>I seek leave to move the following motion:</p>-
- The majority voted against a motion to suspend the usual procedural rules - known as standing orders - in order to let another vote take place.
- ### Motion test
- > *That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the member for Calare moving the following motion immediately:*
- >
- > *That:*
- >
- > *(1) the House notes:*
- >
- >> *(a) the housing affordability crisis is having a devastating impact on many Australians, particularly first home buyers and young families;*
- >>
- >> *(b) urgent action is required to prevent the great Australian dream of home ownership from slipping away from many Australians;*
- >>
- >> *(c) the National Australia Bank Residential Property survey for fourth quarter 2023 found that the market share of foreign buyers in new Australian housing markets grew for the fifth straight quarter to a six and a half year high of 11 per cent, and in New South Wales foreign buyers had a 15 per cent market share; and*
- >>
- >> *(d) a two-year prohibition on the foreign purchase of residential property in Australia would ensure that the interests of foreign property speculators are not being prioritised over the interests of Australian first home buyers and young families; and*
- >
- > *(2) Private Members' business order of the day No. 27, relating to the [Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Foreign Entities Bill 2024](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r7147), be called on immediately and be given priority over all other business for final determination of the House. *
<p class="italic">That:</p><p class="italic">(1) the House notes:</p><p class="italic">(a) the housing affordability crisis is having a devastating impact on many Australians, particularly first home buyers and young families;</p><p class="italic">(b) urgent action is required to prevent the great Australian dream of home ownership from slipping away from many Australians;</p><p class="italic">(c) the National Australia Bank Residential Property survey for fourth quarter 2023 found that the market share of foreign buyers in new Australian housing markets grew for the fifth straight quarter to a six and a half year high of 11 per cent, and in New South Wales foreign buyers had a 15 per cent market share; and</p><p class="italic">(d) a two-year prohibition on the foreign purchase of residential property in Australia would ensure that the interests of foreign property speculators are not being prioritised over the interests of Australian first home buyers and young families; and</p><p class="italic">(2) Private Members' business order of the day No. 27, relating to the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Foreign Entities Bill 2024, be called on immediately and be given priority over all other business for final determination of the House.</p><p>Leave not granted.</p><p>I move:</p><p class="italic">That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the member for Calare moving the following motion immediately:</p><p class="italic">That:</p><p class="italic">(1) the House notes:</p><p class="italic">(a) the housing affordability crisis is having a devastating impact on many Australians, particularly first home buyers and young families;</p><p class="italic">(b) urgent action is required to prevent the great Australian dream of home ownership from slipping away from many Australians;</p><p class="italic">(c) the National Australia Bank Residential Property survey for fourth quarter 2023 found that the market share of foreign buyers in new Australian housing markets grew for the fifth straight quarter to a six and a half year high of 11 per cent, and in New South Wales foreign buyers had a 15 per cent market share; and</p><p class="italic">(d) a two-year prohibition on the foreign purchase of residential property in Australia would ensure that the interests of foreign property speculators are not being prioritised over the interests of Australian first home buyers and young families; and</p><p class="italic">(2) Private Members' business order of the day No. 27, relating to the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Foreign Entities Bill 2024, be called on immediately and be given priority over all other business for final determination of the House.</p><p>I raise this as a matter of urgency, because every single member of this House knows that Australia is in the midst of a housing affordability crisis. I have sat in this House all week and listened to speaker after speaker on both sides of the aisle acknowledging this crisis and saying that it needs to be urgently addressed. There can be no disputing it. It's to the point where there is seemingly universal acknowledgement in this House that this is the case. Go back through the <i>Hansard</i> of this week and you will read members' speeches about how important it is that we get first home buyers and young families into the housing market. It cannot seriously be argued by any member in this House that this is not a matter of national urgency.</p><p>The great Australian dream of home ownership used to be the birthright of every single Australian. Now it's slipping away before our eyes, and everyone in this House knows it. If we accept that there is a housing affordability crisis, the question then becomes: what are we as a parliament going to do to address this issue?</p><p>Part of the solution to the housing affordability crisis is before this House as we speak. It's my private member's bill—my first one—the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Foreign Entities Bill 2024.</p> <p class="speaker">Bob Katter</p><p>It's a very good one.</p> <p class="speaker">Andrew Gee</p><p>I thank the member for Kennedy for his interjection. This bill represents an important part of the solution to this crisis, and it needs to be debated urgency because it can deliver immediate results and make thousands and thousands of new homes and units available to first home buyers and young families each year.</p><p>The bill proposes a two-year prohibition on the foreign purchase of homes in Australia. Boosting housing supply is going to take decades. A two-year ban on foreign property speculators buying Aussie homes would take pressure off the market straightaway. That's the aim of the bill. Noncitizens, non-permanent residents and foreign controlled companies would be included in this prohibition. It covers the purchase of residential property either directly or indirectly and alone or jointly. It does not apply if a non-Australian is purchasing property jointly with a spouse or de facto partner who is an Australian citizen or permanent resident.</p><p>The bill provides for penalties for breaching the prohibition of up to $250,000. This in itself is a substantial penalty. However, for wealthy offending foreign corporations, this may not be a large enough fine. Under the Crimes Act 1914, a penalty of five times this amount may be imposed upon an offending foreign corporate entity, which equates to $1.25 million. Importantly, the bill also provides for the Federal Court of Australia to order the disposal of foreign-held residential property that contravenes the prohibition in this bill.</p><p>Debating this bill is urgent because things are moving quickly in the property market. The latest available data we have on foreign investment in residential real estate covers the 12 months to June 2022. This period included the COVID-19 pandemic global lockdowns, which undoubtedly would have affected the number of homes bought by non-Australians, given that they couldn't travel here. In the years since June 2022, regularity has returned to the housing market, and we know the numbers are higher. In any case, the data reveals a real problem that this bill aims to help solve.</p><p>In the year to June 2022, 4,228 homes were bagged by foreign buyers. That's scarce housing stock that could have gone to 4,228 Australians desperate for a home to call their own and who are being crowded out of the market. More than 75 per cent of these properties sold for less than $1 million. The year before, in the 12 months to 2021, 83 per cent of the homes purchased by foreign buyers were under $1 million. This demonstrates that foreign buyers are snapping up entry-level homes. That's a shocker of a statistic for young families and first home buyers who are trying to get their start. In the five years to June 2022, almost 37,000 residential properties on our shores were snapped up by foreign buyers. That's a huge number of homes that could have been the first rung on the property ladder for Aussies.</p><p>But, since those figures were published, the activities of foreign property speculators have been ramping up big time. The National Australia Bank's recently released residential property survey found that the market share of foreign buyers in new Australian housing markets in October to December 2023 grew for the fifth straight quarter to a 6½-year high of 11 per cent. In New South Wales, foreign buyers had a 15 per cent market share in the fourth quarter and in Western Australia it was 14.2 per cent. The NAB says that this points to a near fivefold increase in market share from the COVID pandemic low of mid-2021. The NAB states that international agents are reporting an increase in inquiries of over 400 per cent. The NAB also went on to find that dwelling prices rose by 9.3 per cent across capital cities in 2023. That's a very significant increase. Action must be taken immediately.</p><p>This bill is not about turning our backs on the wider world; rather it's about making thousands more homes available to hardworking Australians. It's about helping Australian homebuyers, and especially first home buyers, finally get a foothold on the residential property ladder. It's about helping them get their shot at the great Australian dream. The measures outlined in this bill can be an important part of the solution to the housing affordability crisis, along with other policies. They can make a positive contribution and have a positive impact straightaway. It's simple: by pausing foreign buyers from the residential property market for two years, more housing would be available for Australians. It's urgent that we have this debate because, as I have said, this is a measure that can make a real difference quickly. It's much faster to implement this bill than to build tens of thousands of new homes to make up for those bought by foreign property investors. The immediate impact that this bill can have demonstrates why it is so important to bring it on for debate.</p><p>Constituents of the Calare electorate are frequently contacting me to indicate just how difficult it is to find an affordable place to purchase or rent in our area. The fact is, when demand increases in the city, speculators look to park their wealth in properties located in regional centres and thriving towns, causing regional house and rental prices to skyrocket. Allowing foreign buyers to snap up Aussie homes adds unnecessary heat to the housing market that so many are finding themselves locked out of. It's a vicious cycle. In these difficult economic times, we need to be putting the interests of Australians ahead of wealthy foreign property speculators. The bill would bring the goal of homeownership into reach for thousands more Australians each year by banning foreign buyers from snapping up homes on our shores. It's been modelled upon a similar piece of legislation that was passed into law by the Trudeau government in Canada. This month, Canada announced it would be extending its ban on foreign home purchases in Canada for an extra two years to 2027. They are not our only Commonwealth cousins to do so. New Zealand has a similar measure, as does Singapore.</p><p>It's not enough to just believe in the great Australian dream. It's not enough just to talk about that dream in this House. It's our role as members of parliament to empower Aussies to achieve it. I urge all members of this House to support this motion and bring this bill on for debate, on the double.</p> <p class="speaker">Milton Dick</p><p>Is the motion seconded?</p> <p class="speaker">Bob Katter</p><p>I hereby formally second the motion. Yesterday, I highlighted affordability, along with my colleague from Tasmania. I would have heard this word maybe a thousand times so far this year in this parliament. I defy anyone to point out a single action taken, or proposed, by the opposition that would deal with affordability.</p><p>What the federal government is proposing will increase demand. I would draw their attention to a paper put out by Malcolm Turnbull, no less, and an Oxford don—who happened to be an Australian and was a professor at Oxford. They said that governments continuously solve the housing problem by increasing demand, like, 'We'll give you a five per cent interest rate,' or, 'We'll give you a $10,000 encouragement fee to get your own home.' All this increases demand but does nothing whatsoever to increase supply. At least here, in the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Foreign Entities Bill 2024, we are curtailing the demand very, very significantly. The honourable member for Calare has outlined the degree of penetration into the Australian housing market by foreign investors. A foreign investor wants to park his money somewhere. I've seen numerous examples of that in North Queensland—investments that couldn't possibly ever make money but very safe investments. We've only got so many house builders. We've only got the provision of so many house-building supplies in this country. If they're being mopped up by foreigners to build houses that they really don't want anyone to live in, then, of course, you're dramatically exacerbating the housing market. It's not as if prohibition is some extreme measure. Our cousins in Canada have already done it. In a country where the price of a house now in Brisbane is over $120,000, the price of a house in Sydney is over $1.2 million and the price of a house in Melbourne is over $1 million, how can any person with the average take-home pay of near enough to $100,000—he pays $25,000 of that in tax; he's got a take-home pay of $75,000—buy a house for a million dollars? I don't know. Of course, they're not.</p><p>One of the very unpleasant outcomes of this is that young couples are saying, 'Well, we're just going to wait until we've got enough money to get a house and settle down properly.' They don't ever get the money to buy a house, so they don't have any children, so now we are a vanishing race. When the figures come out this year, you'll find that, when 20 Australians die, they're replaced by 16 people. That's a great achievement by the Liberal Party and the Labor Party! You have now imposed upon us that we're a vanishing race of people. You need a house to settle down.</p><p>One of my great ambitions in life was to have a couple of acres surrounding my house, where we could toss a football around and play a bit of rugby league in the backyard, even if it was only touch football. There would be a bit of space to grow some trees. We didn't have a single tree on our acreage. Now there are over a thousand native trees on our acreage. We've got a beautiful quarter acre. When all the family are home, we play touch football and have a lot of fun. It's very, very civilised. The beautiful thing about this country is that it's an empty country. Go 150 kilometres west of Sydney, and you can fire a machine gun or drop atomic bombs all the way across to the Indian Ocean and not kill anyone, because there's no-one living there. That's the wonderful thing about Australia.</p><p>Our party in Queensland—if they get the balance of power this year—will lift the speed limits to 125 kilometres per hour on divided, safe highways, and that will enable people to live further out on giant spoke roads. What the member of parliament is doing, new as he is to this place, is a wonderful thing for his country. I salute him and back him very, very strongly in trying to help Australians to get their own homes— <i>(Time expired)</i></p> <p class='motion-notice motion-notice-truncated'>Long debate text truncated.</p>-
-
|