Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has delivered a major new housing policy, promising to spend $5 billion speeding up funding for critical housing infrastructure — like sewerage, water and power.

Mr Dutton has coined the policy a ‘game-changer for young Australians’ feeling trapped out of the property market, and suggested the fund will enable the construction of 500,000 new homes, mostly in new green-field housing developments.

The announcement follows Coalition commitments to increase housing supply by cutting migration, capping international student numbers, and enforcing a two-year ban on foreign investors and temporary residents purchasing existing homes in Australia.

The move comes after a week dominated by discussions around housing affordability, following news Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will soon settle on a $4.3 million home on the New South Wales Central Coast.

The Greens tried to seize the moment by releasing analysis suggesting more than 750,000 renters could become home-owners under old Labor policies to limit negative gearing and halve capital gains tax concession.

The Albanese government was quick to say it was not considering changes to negative gearing ahead of the next election.

Announcing the Coalition’s new housing policy at a greenfield housing site outside of Perth on Saturday, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has maintained the Coalition isn’t considering negative gearing either.

“Taking supply out of the housing market isn’t going to help anyone,” said Mr Dutton.

Use it or lose it

The Coalition’s housing infrastructure fund money will be supplied on a ‘use-it-or-lose-it’ basis, meaning if construction companies don’t progress projects within 12 months, funding will be terminated.

Shadow Minister for Infrastructure Bridget McKenzie will be the minister responsible for the fund, which she says will be responsible for speeding up the ‘not sexy stuff’, like sewerage and access roads.

“It means putting real money on the table so local councils, property developers and others can unlock the potential of these [green-field] sites and get people into their homes sooner,” she said.

In an effort to further address supply constraints, the Coalition will freeze any further changes to the National Construction Code (NCC) for 10 years, claiming recent changes have added red tape, driving up the cost of new housing.

“The Coalition’s freeze will provide certainty to the industry and let builders get on with the job of building homes for Australians,” said Mr Dutton.

Backed by industry

Key construction and building groups flanked key Coalition figures announcing the new housing policy, broadly speaking in support of the proposed changes.

Master Builders CEO Denita Wawn said a combination of ‘labour shortages, access to water, sewerage, power and roads, union disruption, and red tape’ impact project cost and build time, and a fund to speed up delivery of infrastructure would have the group’s support.

The group also supported the freeze on changes to the building code.

“A pause on unnecessary code changes that increase cost and complexity without meaningful improvements in standards is a positive step,” Ms Wawn said.

The 2022 National Construction Code (NCC) requires that all new Australian houses and apartments meet a minimum energy efficiency rating of 7-stars under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS).

The opposition has suggested that changes to the code have added $60,000 to the cost of a new build, but that figure has been contested.

The Australian Glass & Window Association says the average cost to upgrade new homes in major Australian cities to 7-star energy ratings is closer to $5,000.

The association also pointed out higher performing windows and design features reduce a home’s energy consumption and running costs.

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Government responds

The Coalition policy outstrips the $1 billion commitment the Albanese government has committed to speeding up housing infrastructure.

But the target of 500,000 homes is less than the Albanese government’s commitment to build 1.2 million homes by the end of the decade, through a range of housing policies.

Shadow Housing Minister Michael Sukkar has suggested the government is on track to fall well short of that target, even going so far as to label the goal a ‘fake commitment’.

But Housing Minister Clare O’Neil has hit back, claiming the Coalition hasn’t outlined a broader housing target, and has not shown the same willingness to work with the states to build more homes.

ABC