Overview
- Opposition Leader Angus Taylor used his Thursday budget reply to propose capping net overseas migration at one person per new dwelling, with the cap set each year by the prior year’s housing completions reported to parliament.
- The Coalition says it would postpone deciding which visa categories to cut until in government, arguing the approach lets construction catch up after recent high population gains.
- Taylor also proposed restricting access to key federal supports to citizens only, citing programs such as the NDIS, family tax benefits, paid parental leave and the age pension.
- The plan revives a $5 billion Housing Infrastructure Fund to fund water, sewerage and access roads for new estates and pares back National Construction Code rules that the opposition says add up to $70,000 to a new home.
- The Coalition would repeal Labor’s housing tax changes and scrap programs including the Housing Australia Future Fund, while Labor’s budget had set a 185,000 migration program, tightened visa integrity, and forecast NOM falling to 245,000 in 2026–27, with industry and former officials warning of trade-offs between easing housing pressure and risking skill shortages.