[00:00:00] Hi, I'm Chrissy Mack from Radio Northern Beaches and you've just tuned in to the Listen and Chat with Chrissy Mack podcast. This is the space where we pull no punches, sometimes a little controversial, sometimes downright outrageous and sometimes just packed full of information that is interesting to know. Oh my God, give me a break.
[00:00:21] Treasurer Jim Chalmers sat on ABC Breakfast this morning looking straight down the camera lens, telling us the government had to make these tax changes because that's the reason people have been locked out of the housing market. Where do I begin to scream at this man? Let me make something crystal clear.
[00:00:44] Right now, the housing crisis today wasn't caused by tax tweaks and it wasn't caused by young people buying smashed avocado. It is the direct result of progressive governments abandoning a proven system. Post-World War II Australia built the middle class because state governments built housing commission homes directly.
[00:01:09] They gave families a safe roof over their heads and allowed those who could afford it pay that house out until it became their own. That was my experience as a child and it worked. The price of housing is due to the lack of housing. The cost of rent is due to the lack of housing.
[00:01:28] The single most stupid decision our governments ever made was outsourcing public shelter to private developers and community providers. It's time for the government to start governing again and get back to building housing commission houses. And don't get me started on the Reserve Bank. We are constantly told that petrol prices are spiking inflation. That is an international crisis completely out of our control.
[00:01:58] At the exact same time, Australians desperate to escape extortion at the petrol pump went out and bought electric vehicles. Some took on extra budget pressures just to survive the fuel crisis. And what does it look like the RBA is going to do? They take those electric vehicle sales, throw them into their calculations of disposable income and demand, decide the economy is running hot and slam mortgage holders with another rate hike.
[00:02:27] Please explain to me how homeowners have become the punching bag for every single correction in the economy when they are not the ones driving the spending. And who is actually buying these electric cars? Let's look at the data. It's high income postcodes, corporate fleets and people using federal tax write-offs.
[00:02:50] Everyday working families choosing between food and mortgages aren't dropping 60 grand on a new EV. The government creates incentives to force you to buy electric cars. But when people do, the Reserve Bank treats that exact spending as an overheating economy and tries to smash your home out from under you.
[00:03:13] The right hand has no idea what the left hand is doing and the Australian public is getting crushed in the middle. The RBA claims interest rates are the only tool they have. Well, I'm sorry. Expletive warning here. The whole system for calculating inflation is fucked. How is it not blatantly obvious that raising rates jacks up borrowing costs for every business,
[00:03:40] forcing them to pass these costs straight onto food, goods and everyday essentials? Rate rises are actively causing families to lose their homes and sleep in their cars. We have parents with young children living out of vehicles. The RBA's answer is to hit them again. And don't even talk to me about this word productivity. Over decades, governments stripped out our manufacturing,
[00:04:08] smashed our farmers and dairy industry and gutted our arts and culture. Venue closures and funding cuts are destroying Australian stories, while musicians and actors can barely find a place to practice their craft. Then I turn on the news and hear some commentator whining that too many people are still going out for dinner or taking their kids to the movies. For God's sake!
[00:04:33] What has Australia come to when simple human pleasures are treated like an economic crime because they drive up inflationary figures? If we don't go to restaurants, if we can't afford clothes and basics, business collapses and jobs are lost. Look at our steel production. We are pouring millions of taxpayer dollars into saving strategic manufacturing like YLA, yet it's constantly on the brink and facing sell-offs.
[00:05:01] I said it before and I'll say it again. The government needs to take these vital strategic industries over, make them viable, run them properly and get the taxpayers' money back. No, it isn't easy. The equipment is outdated and the debt is massive. But steel is a sovereign necessity. We cannot keep handing out taxpayer blank checks without total operational control and guaranteed survival.
[00:05:31] It's time to stop managing the spin, stop blaming working people and start fixing structural damage done to this country. I am so angry right now that I'm spitting chips, as the old saying goes. Now, as usual, these are my thoughts and feelings and not necessarily anybody else's. Have a great week. All right. I hope I've given you a lot to think about and talk about and debate and maybe disagree with.
[00:05:59] Don't forget to follow, like and share. Stay safe and I'll catch you next time.