Where is the Coalition’s housing policy?

By Leith van Onselen

A reader has just sent me a link to the Coalition’s policies and discussions page, which contains 48 discussion papers outlining the Coalition’s policies on just about everything. Here’s the list of topics:

• The Coalition’s plan for the digital economy & e-Government
• The Coalition’s policy for Veterans and their families
• The Coalition’s policy for Stronger Defence
• The Coalition’s policy to improve mental health
• The Coalition’s Plan for Aviation
• National Stronger Regions Fund
• The Coalition’s policy for Agriculture
• The Coalition’s policy for schools: Putting students first
• The Coalition’s growth plan for the Central Coast
• The Coalition’s plan to increase employment participation
• The Coalition’s policy for a more competitive and sustainable fisheries sector
• The Coalition’s Policy to Boost Dementia Research
• The Coalition’s Policy to Index the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card
• The Coalition’s Policy for Better Support for Australian Apprentices
• Upgrade to Adelaide’s North-South Road Corridor
• A regional deterrence framework to combat people smuggling
• The Coalition’s Policy to Improve Road Safety
• The Coalition’s policy to support Australia’s health system
• The Coalition’s policy to boost manufacturing
• The Coalition’s Policy for Disability and Carers
• The Coalition’s commitment to upgrade the Great Ocean Road
• The Coalition’s policy to tackle crime
• The Coalition’s policy for jobs and growth in small business
• The Coalition’s Policy for Paid Parental Leave
• Boosting employment for Indigenous Australians
• The Coalition’s Policy to Build the Swan Valley Bypass and Perth Gateway
• The Coalition’s Rigorous Policy Costings Process
• The Coalition’s Policy to Clear Labor’s 30,000 Border Failure Backlog
• The Coalition’s Economic Growth Plan for Tasmania
• Mobile Black Spot Programme
• Building Melbourne’s East West Link
• Reducing Drownings
• Helping Problem Gamblers
• Boosting Employment in Tasmania
• Lowering Company Tax
• Scrapping the Carbon Tax and Reducing the Cost of Living
• Fair indexation of military service pensions
• Better Transparency and Accountability of Registered Organisation
• Operation Sovereign Borders
• Fixing the Bruce Highway
• Fast Broadband and an Affordable NBN
• Boosting Productivity and Reducing Regulation
• Improving the Fair Work Laws
• Creating a Green Army
• Protect and Streamline Health and Medical Research Funding
• 2030 Vision for Developing Northern Australia
• Building a Strong, Prosperous Tasmania
• Respite and Hospice Care for Children in Brisbane

You will notice above that there is no Coalition housing policy. Aparently, things like “creating a green army” and providing “fair indexation of military service pensions” are more important than the single biggest purchase anyone will make and by far the biggest asset class in Australia.

By way of comparison, compare Australia’s two major parties’ neglect of housing policy against the upcoming debate on New Zealand’s “housing crisis” that will take place next week on TV3, featuring a range of Government and Opposition politicians (media release below):

This month, The Vote tackles housing, asking “How do we fix New Zealand’s housing crisis?” In a piece of television history, the people answering that question are the political powerbrokers, in the first primetime multi-party debate to be held outside an election campaign, screening on Wednesday 11 September, at 8.30pm on TV3.

Just over a year from the 2014 General Election, and as the Labour party prepares to select its next leader, Kiwis will get their best chance to compare Government and Opposition approaches to the housing crisis. In a departure from its usual format, The Vote will be divided into three parts, each covering a key area of the housing debate: foreign ownership, first home buyers and the housing shortage.

The Vote: Housing Special will give Kiwis a rare insight into the Government’s plans, and the alternatives offered byOpposition parties…

Housing has been the topic of heated debate this year as prices in New Zealand hit record highs and home ownership rates fell as low as they’ve been for 50 years. Just 65 percent of Kiwis now own their own homes, down from 75percent in the 1990s. In that time, house prices have more than doubled…

“Housing literally hits people where they live, so this month we’re asking politicians for their solutions – what can they do to stop the next generation of Kiwis from being a generation of renters?

“It’s the first time six parties have agreed to debate on primetime television outside an election campaign, and that’s because New Zealanders care so much about this issue. We all need to know what the future holds for housing in New Zealand.”

Media Release – The Vote Housing Special-1