Government responsibility lies with lthe people

Citizens Electoral Council of Australia
Media Release  30th of January 2009

Government responsibility lies with low-income homeless, not bank shareholders
Citizens Electoral Council leader Craig Isherwood said today, that the “proposed $4 billion commercial property bailout by the Rudd government, is exactly the type of ‘crime’ that warrants investigating by a ‘Pecora Commission’ into the banking system.”

Mr Isherwood said, “Why would you continue to throw good taxpayers’ money after bad investments, to prop up a highly inflated property bubble, and simply pour money into the big four private banks to keep their shareholders happy. Who is lobbying for this?”

Mr Isherwood said, “A collapse in property values, even domestic property values is inevitable as we have been developing a housing bubble for the last ten years, on the back of the global financial bubbles. The private banks are just trying to loot the taxpayer again!”

Given the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s recent report indicating that 200,000 Australians are waiting for public housing, with some on waiting lists for two years or more, Mr Isherwood proposed that the Rudd government use the $4 billion to establish a Federal housing authority—run in conjunction with Centrelink and government-owned, state housing authorities—to immediately build a minimum of 20,000 houses per year, within all areas of Australia. This would require a wartime-like mobilisation of resources, but could be done.

This accommodation would be available for low-income earners. The homes would be rented out to people who qualify for government rent assistance, and tenants would only pay around 20% of their net weekly income in rent.

Mr Isherwood said this would then free up disposable income for poorer families, as well as give the Federal Government a flow of cash to expand the programme.

Instead of the one-off, $10 billion cash binge the Rudd government threw into the economy in December, this type of directed capital expenditure would provide a long-term economic benefit.

The benefit to the general community, and the general welfare of the community would be immense, and in combination with the CEC’s proposed Homeowners and Bank Protection Bill, would begin to take housing out of the speculative bubble.

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