In the two weeks since Prime Minister Albanese shuffled his cabinet, the new Minister for Housing and Homelessness, Claire O'Neil has had more cut through, at least in media coverage (SMH, Australian, Guardian), than two years of the previous minister, Julie Collins. Talking the talk that is, not walking the walk, of which there is none yet. Here’s a way to fix that.
Australia’s housing crisis embodies the two biggest issues facing Australia today: cost of living and inequality. Within that crisis the greatest need is social housing, particularly for the homeless. Federal Labor continually says it understands of the importance of the issue, but in the last two years, not a single additional house, of any kind, could be attributed to the money or policies of the federal government.
In part this results from a lack of public cash. Australia's tax / GDP ratio is one of the lowest in the OECD, so federal government money has to stretch across many priorities, but unlike other social initiatives such as education and health, the Labor party did not, or could not, fund housing directly at first, creating an investment vehicle (the Housing Affordability Future Fund or HAFF), where the profits only are invested in housing. So, substantial monies are not expected any time soon.
At the urging of the Greens, Labor reluctantly had to put real dollars on the table, making the Greens’ housing spokesperson, Max Chandler-Mather, the centre of much vilification. Not only did he defeat Labor favourite Terri Butler, but the first-termer had the temerity to be so much more forthright and articulate than the minister.
But that money, sent to the states, did not result in building any new housing, that was not already planned. Not unsurprising really, given the shrinking house-building industry, beset with rapidly rising costs for materials and subcontracted labor, sending builders broke or unwilling to continue in a market of shrinking profits.
But federal Labor’s inaction also springs from a lack of will to tackle the issue head on. Social housing is the domain of state governments, where the falling income from GST receipts (WA excepted), is not compensated by the recent housing top-up monies. No matter how poorly planned the states’ programs for social housing have been (NSW selling, not building, for nine years), the federal government is loath to intervene.
Local councils, once providers of social housing, now see their community responsibility to act on behalf of the middle class in blocking developments, such as social housing, that the NIMBYs don’t see as personally advantageous.
In contrast, a recent proposal to turn a 32-tenant boarding house into luxury units was opposed by local Paddingtonians and refused by Council, but will likely be approved by the Court, without legislation to prevent such an affront, and the mayor refusing to use the riches from developers’ contributions to buy the project.
Housing advocates estimate that Australia needs around 10% of dwellings for social housing, currently only 3%. Yawning gaps like that brought over 100 housing experts to support a UNSW City Futures Research Centre initiative, to propose a National Housing and Homelessness Strategy, supported by two cross benchers, but cavalierly dismissed as over-reach by Minister Collins, as one her last acts before heading back to her former opposition portfolio of agriculture.
Labor should take a lesson from its housing ministers past, and make a demonstration project, or ten. Tom Uren saved housing in the Woolloomooloo valley and Glebe, handing it over to the NSW Housing Commission, providing inner city social housing for 50 years. Brian Howe instigated and funded a program to support co-operatives, and students (Stucco) and artists (Alpha) have been the low cost beneficiaries for 35 years.
Newly enabled minister Claire O'Neil is ideally placed to initiate similar projects today, given Commonwealth-owned sites are not subject to state or local council laws. Hence the Harry Seidler-designed 43-storey Horizon Apartments rose on the old ABC site in Forbes St Darlinghurst, overwhelming the low-scale local area. It’s a great design but wholly inappropriate, and council could do nought to stop it.
It’s time to turn the tables on that egregious project by fast-tracking a shining exemplar project on federal land: a mid-rise mix of social, affordable and market-based housing that contributes to the community and takes a step towards solving homelessness; rather than a minister continually whingeing that it's all too hard, and who's done nothing effective in housing for two years.
Title image: The churches show how it could be done: a proposal to use church land (no longer needed for a church) to build social housing in inner west Sydney. Design by environa studio.
Next week: 10 diagrams that explain the housing crisis.
This is Tone on Tuesday #224, 13 August 2024. Researched and written by Tone Wheeler, architect / Adjunct Prof UNSW / President AAA. The views expressed are his. Past Tone on Tuesday columns can be found here. You can contact TW at [email protected].
