Why social housing spending should trump tram

WE are all familiar with the “deep” concern of politicians about increasing homelessness and housing stress.

Yet they fail to adopt policies to increase the supply of social housing, despite policy reviews over decades finding it to be the most effective action. Instead, funding priority has been given to rent assistance, negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions.

These policy priorities have resulted in the share of social housing dwellings nationally falling from 9 per cent in 1990 to 4 per cent in 2022; increases in homelessness, housing stress from rapidly increasing rents and house prices, lengthening social housing waiting lists and a decline in the rate of home-ownership.

Other outcomes include the subsidising of well-off households into multiple home-ownership and the construction of environmentally problematic large homes. The Parliamentary Library estimates the national shortage of social housing will increase from 524,200 dwellings in 2022 to 670,600 dwellings by 2032.

The situation is no better in the ACT with the social housing share falling from 12 per cent of dwellings in 1990 to 6 per cent in 2022.

The Productivity Commission’s Report on Government Services data found the ACT had Australia’s highest rate of long-term homelessness, that between 2013 and 2022 the expenditure on social housing fell and the number of public housing dwellings fell from 10,956 to 10,744.

The construction of more social housing could be funded by increasing its budgetary priority, higher taxes, taxing high-value family homes, the removal of first home buyer assistance and reducing negative and capital gains tax concessions which largely benefit the wealthy.

However, political action is constrained by community opposition to increased taxes and attitudes shaped by windfall gains from increases in property prices. Until such views change, significant reduction in housing inequality is unlikely.

This places an onus on governments to increase the budgetary priority of social housing. Current actions include state governments providing $10 billion for the construction of an additional 15,500 social housing dwellings and the Federal government’s plan to build 30,000 new social and affordable housing properties over five years through the Housing Australia Future Fund.

Consideration could be given to targeting rent assistance to those on the lowest incomes, exploring rent-to-buy and build-to-rent schemes.

The ACT government could demonstrate its social justice credentials by giving social housing a higher priority including the diversion of funds from the unnecessary light rail extension to Woden.

Mike Quirk, Garran

Likely the women will feel like vomiting

RE the letter from Karina Morris about construction workers “perving” and commenting on scantily-dressed women (Letters, CN January 26).

I assume that the women Karina referred to in her letter were young (let’s face it, they would not have been considered “pervworthy” if over 25).

They might have dressed in a particular way hoping to attract the attention of certain young men they found appealing. They might have done it because they were trying to look like someone on social media. One thing I am sure of is that they did not do it to attract the attention of every hideous man they passed by.

There seems to be a general perception among men that women are not selective and will appreciate the attention of any man. Not so. It’s more likely the women will feel like vomiting.

Deb Edwards, Weston

Is it surprising disrespect is becoming blatant?

PERHAPS Katrina Morris (Letters, CN January 26) would prefer the culture of my childhood when a man would dip his lid or give up his seat to a woman as a mark of respect?

To even open a door for the modern woman could provoke a sarcastic response in the feminist vernacular.

The late Prince Philip summarised the change in attitudes by quipping that when a man opens a car door for a woman it is either a new car or a new wife.

If young men receive their relevant education from pornography, TV programs such as “Married at First Sight” and the casual sex paradigm, while being a single, woke female is often preferred over being a mother of a family, is it surprising that disrespect is becoming blatant, even violent.

Yes Katrina, this is 2023.

John L Smith, Farrer

Who do these blokes think they are?

THE letter by Karina Morris (CN January 26) about the behaviour of male construction workers deserves support.

I am a 72-year-old male and I don’t remember ever having been taught that it is okay for men to publicly ridicule women for their choice of clothing.

It is interesting that building sites are the most common places where this happens. A group of blokes together trying to impress each other with their witty (or nasty) comments about some passing woman. They gain bravado by being in a group. They are not really concerned about what the woman is wearing, they are just trying to impress their mates. They are behaving like the cowards that they really are.

Karina mentioned that a male construction worker thought it was okay for men to react adversely when a woman wasn’t attired according to their standards. Who do these blokes think they are? The Taliban?

A common sight around construction sites is the bloke with his shorts pushed low by his beer gut. From the rear, an unpleasant vertical smile displayed to the world. If a group of women were to start publicly humiliating one of these specimens, can you imagine the outrage!

Unfortunately, too many men from mine and the following generation, haven’t got the wit to realise that their attitudes are no longer wanted.

John Franze, Gowrie

Sexism with overdose of arrogant hypocrisy

KARINA Morris hit the male attitude problem on the head when she relates how the male worker would have told his female family members how to dress when they went out in public (Letters, CN January 26).

So some men still want to control women’s actions, right down to the way they look. Yet, they try to abrogate themselves and their mates from any responsibility to act like intelligent grownups.

Sounds like blatant sexism to me laced with an overdose of arrogant hypocrisy.

Eric Hunter, Cook