Socialist Alliance says Labor’s budget ‘housing fix’ doesn’t address the crisis
Labor’s 2026 NSW Budget does nothing to address the state’s worsening housing crisis, said Socialist Alliance Balmain candidate Isaac Nellist.
Quotes attributed to Isaac Nellist:
“While NSW Labor’s budget allocation for domestic violence programs is welcome, the allocation to nurses and midwives’ wages is not enough. These frontline workers have long been undervalued and the promised pay raise does not address structural issues which is driving nurses to seek employment in other states.
“The budget barely includes a mention of housing, despite it being a primary concern especially for renters.
“Labor’s ‘housing fix’ is a prefabrication and modular construction factory which, it claims, will cut construction costs and times — most likely at the expense of construction jobs.
“It has also announced that it will ‘speed up’ planning approvals, using artificial intelligence tools — again at the expense of real jobs. Labor’s method further removes community consultation from planning and prioritises developer profits.
“Labor claims its new speedy planning approvals and fast-tracking of construction will address the housing affordability crisis. It won’t. It simply continues the unjust housing distribution system, whereby wealthy investors and mega-landlords are legally able to hoard enormous property portfolios, thereby driving up housing costs.
“Public housing could solve the housing affordability crisis. Not only would it provide homes for those who need them — the public housing waiting list is currently at 69,000 households — it would have a deflationary impact on house prices and rents.”
Nellist has been involved in the campaign to stop livable public housing at Waterloo Estate from being demolished in a housing crisis.
“Labor touts its ‘innovative’ new housing construction facility, yet is happy to demolish perfectly good housing at Waterloo at the behest of developers.
“At Waterloo, as at Bays West, Labor is privatising public land to hand huge profits to developers. It claims to be planning ‘affordable’ housing, but that term is rubbery,
“Socialist Alliance says serious funds should be devoted to public housing construction across NSW. It is also calling for a 10-year freeze on rents.”
Labor’s other big announcement is its Transport Affordability Package, which includes cutting private vehicle registration costs by $100 and capping tolls at $50 a week (down from $60), claiming it will address rising fuel costs driven by the United States-Israel war on Iran.
Andrew Chuter, Socialist Alliance Legislative Council candidate, said the priorities are wrong and public and active transport should have been boosted.
Quotes attributed to Andrew Chuter:
“NSW Labor could follow other states and offer free public transport, or 50 cent public transport fares, in response to rising fuel prices.
“Capping tolls just means greater subsidies go to private toll road operator Transurban.
“Socialist Alliance says free, accessible and frequent public transport would not only help working people, it would help the planet. The budget also missed out on expanding bus services and bringing privatised bus services back into public hands.”
Further information:
Isaac Nellist 0468 526 096
Andrew Chuter 0412 723 565
Authorised by N. Spencer, 22-36 Mountain Street, Ultimo NSW 2007
We pay our respects to the First Nations peoples; sovereignty was never ceded.
