Greens accused of selling out in backing Labor’s Help To Buy and Build To Rent bill

The Liberal Party’s shadow minister for housing has ripped into the Greens Party for supporting Labor’s “terrible” build to rent scheme during a debate with his Greens counterpart at the National Press Club on Tuesday.

Deakin MP Michael Sukkar was asked if he would repeal Labor’s scheme if the Liberal Party won the next election.

“They’re terrible policies, which is why we are in many respects, unsurprised but dismayed that the Greens are now supporting it,” he said.

“On build to rent the Greens have sold out.” Mr Sukkar said Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather railed against the property industry and banks, yet his party decided to vote with Labor to give preferential tax treatment to foreign corporates to own housing stock in Australia through the scheme.

“We don’t think that the most beneficial tax arrangements for housing in this country should be the province of foreign fund managers, they should be the province for Australian mum and dads,” he said.

“We want Australians to own our housing stock.”

The respective housing spokesmen had a respectful debate but their arguments were opposite.

The Liberals are promising to let people take $50,000 from their superannuation to buy a house, should the Coalition form government next year.

The Greens want tax concessions for property investors phased out, and for developers to be forced to build at least some affordable housing.

The Liberals say they will slash international migration numbers. The Greens say cutting migration is scapegoating people from overseas while property investors hoover up properties with the help of negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions.

The Coalition is pushing a two-year ban on foreign investors and temporary residents buying existing Australian homes, while “ensuring an adequate number” of skilled construction workers.

Mr Sukkar says a Coalition government would invest $5bn to get sewerage, roads and telecommunications infrastructure built, and to accelerate unfulfilled development applications.

The Liberals are also promising a greater focus on developing outer suburbs, as Mr Sukkar says many people still want a freestanding house despite the huge push for urban in-fill.

The Greens MP had argued he was angry that Australian lives were stalling under the weight of the housing crisis.

“I am angry about this situation for my generation, and you should be too,” 32-year-old Mr Chandler-Mather said of the effect of the housing crisis.

“The Liberals were in power for nine years. What did they do? … Help to screw over renters.”

Mr Chandler-Mather said life was short and everyone should have time to spend with friends and family.

“So much of our lives are spent working, paying a huge portion of our income on rents and mortgages,” he said.

“Stuck renting forever. Moving every couple of years. Never able to set down roots.

“Pulling kids out of their local school or stuck with the huge mortgage repayments leaving them on the brink of default.

“Or worse, living out of a car, maybe with young kids.

“That so many in this country, a wealthy country like ours, aren’t afforded these opportunities is something to be mad about.”

The first-term House of Representatives member also explained why he does not have a mortgage, despite being on a $230,000 salary.

Mr Chandler-Mather said he gives about $50,000 of his salary to a free meals program in his Brisbane electorate.

“I was elected by a movement of people, a lot of whom are low-income renters and it wasn’t right for me not to give up a big portion of my salary to make sure that I could give back to that movement,” he explained.

Making the sizeable donation, being in a single-income family and living in inner-Brisbane, “it is actually sort of difficult at the moment to buy a house there,” he said.

“I want to be clear, though, I am not the one doing it tough.”

As the two men fielded questions at the press club, a hotly debated Bill passed the Senate.

Labor’s signature shared equity scheme passed the upper house 36 votes to 29. This week the Greens dropped their attempts to reduce capital gains tax benefits and negative gearing for property investors, ending a months-long stalemate.

The shared equity scheme will allow 10,000 first homebuyers a year over four years to buy a home with the federal government putting up 40 per cent of the purchase price for new homes and 30 per cent for existing homes. This Bill will now return to the lower house and is expected to become law.

Labor’s Build to Rent Bill is expected to pass in the same fashion later on Tuesday, after the Greens opposed it for the same reasons. That scheme gives tax incentives to property developers to encourage the construction of rental-only dwellings.

Despite jibes from Mr Chandler-Mather and Mr Sukkar, Housing Minister Clare O’Neil declined an invitation to the press club debate because these key pieces of legislation were being voted on.