The Albanese Labor Government will make significant new housing investments in next week's Budget to help deliver our comprehensive Homes for Australia plan.
The Prime Minister convened National Cabinet on Friday, where Premiers and Chief Ministers backed the following new measures in the Budget to help Australians build, rent and buy:
- $1 billion directed towards crisis and transitional accommodation for women and children fleeing domestic violence, and youth under the National Housing Infrastructure Facility. This includes increasing the proportion of grants for this investment from $175 million to $700 million in the Budget to be able to support crisis and transitional housing.
- $1 billion to get homes built sooner - funding for states and territories to build the roads, sewers, energy, water and community infrastructure that we need for new homes and for additional social housing supply.
- A new $9.3 billion 5-year National Agreement on Social Housing and Homelessness - for states and territories to combat homelessness, provide crisis support and build and repair social housing. This includes a doubling of Commonwealth homelessness funding to $400 million every year, matched by states and territories.
This significant new investment builds on the more than $25 billion in new housing investments our Government is delivering over the next decade, including:
- $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund to build 30,000 social and affordable rental homes.
- $2 billion Social Housing Accelerator to deliver around 4,000 new social homes across Australia.
- $3 billion New Homes Bonus to incentivise states and territories to build more homes.
- $5.5 billion Help to Buy scheme to help more Australians buy their own home.
- $2.7 billion to increase Commonwealth Rent Assistance by 15 per cent.
- $2 billion in financing for more social and affordable rental homes.
We need to build more homes, more quickly, in more parts of the country.
Which is why the Albanese Government has an ambitious goal of building 1.2 million homes by the end of the decade.
We know this is a challenge, but it's a challenge we have to meet.
We need more tradies and construction workers. That's why earlier this week the Government announced $90.6 million to boost the number of construction workers, including 20,000 new fee free places.
We also need to reduce pressure on the private rental market.
That's why the Government is today announcing we will work with the higher education sector on new regulation to require universities to increase their supply of student accommodation for domestic and international students.
Homes for Australia is our Government's plan to help keep the great Australian dream in reach.
Quotes attributable to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese:
"This Budget will provide an additional $1 billion for social and emergency housing to support women and children escaping domestic violence and will ensure a new five year funding agreement with states and territories for housing and homelessness.
"We are encouraging states and territories to kick-start building by providing an extra $1 billion to help fund the roads and services new homes need, and for new social housing.
"This Budget means more tradies, fewer barriers to construction, less talk and more homes.
"This isn't about one suburb or one city or one state. It's a challenge facing Australians everywhere and it needs action from every level of government."
Quotes attributable to Treasurer Jim Chalmers:
"Housing is a big priority for the Albanese Government and it will be a big focus of the Budget.
"Australia needs to build more homes more quickly and that's what this substantial investment will help to deliver.
"We're delivering billions more dollars in the Budget to build more homes across the country because we know that to address this housing challenge, we need to boost supply."
Quotes attributable to Minister for Housing Julie Collins:
"Building more homes is the best way to address Australia's housing challenges, and this is exactly what Homes for Australia will deliver.
"Homes for Australia will turbocharge the construction of new homes right across the country and ease the pressure on Australians doing it tough.
"We're working across government, and with other tiers of government, to achieve the ambitious national target of 1.2 million new homes by the end of the decade.
"This will deliver more homes for home buyers, more homes for renters and more homes for Australians who need them."
Quotes attributable to Minister for Education Jason Clare:
"Our international education sector is incredibly important to our country.
"We need to ensure its ongoing sustainability and part of that means we need more purpose-built student accommodation.
"We need more purpose-built housing to support students in higher education and that's what these reforms, developed in consultation with the sector, will help to drive."
