Local councils from around Australia have united to call for a national policy on affordable housing.
The recommendation, from Marrickville Council, was endorsed last week in Canberra at the National General Assembly (NGA) of Local Government.
The recommendation calls for the establishment of a National Housing Authority that would develop an Australia-wide policy on rental accommodation shortages, rising land prices, and the ever-increasing cost of housing.
Mayor of Marrickville Jo Haylen said the Marrickville resolution would help fill the void left by state and federal neglect of the issue.
“Public or social housing is a state responsibility.
“But the system is crippled under 10-year waiting lists.
“And just when we needed national leadership on this critical issue the federal government abolished the National Housing Council – meaning there is now no coordinated and strategic approach to the provision of housing.”
The National Housing Supply Council, established in 2008 to monitor housing demand, supply, and affordability, was abolished by the Abbott government in November last year.
Australia now has among the most expensive housing in the world.
“In our own area, Marrickville Council has had to take action not only because our residents have said they want us to confront the complex problem of housing affordability, but also because skyrocketing property prices are threatening Marrickville’s diversity.
“Inner west housing has become so prohibitively expensive that graduate teachers, child carers, nurses, and those in hospitality can struggle to meet rents and mortgages.
“Do we really want a community where a teacher, child carer, nurse, or hospitality worker can’t afford to live?
“We want people from all walks of life living and working in our suburbs. Having to live further away from family and community support systems, travelling further to get to work or to visit their loved ones – it’s terrible for personal lives and it’s bad for the environment.
“The burden of providing affordable housing has fallen on local councils because we are often the first line of defence for displaced residents.”
