Launching her vision for a $2 billion Regional Housing Infrastructure Fund, Dr Haines said her plan would deliver more homes for regional Australians.
“An affordable and secure home sets people up to thrive and build their lives,” she said.
“The current housing crisis is making life hard for too many people, holding back the growth of our region and affecting essential service delivery.”
Dr Haines said the fund would build the paths, poles and power that must go in before new homes could be built.
“We have the land and the vision, but we need to properly invest in the infrastructure to develop our towns and regional cities,” she said.
"Consecutive governments have failed to acknowledge that regional councils and smaller towns struggle to increase their housing supply because of critical infrastructure like sewerage, water and power.
“The economies of scale that work in the cities apply differently in the country, but governments keep ignoring this problem.
“I’m unashamedly ambitious for regions like ours and cannot accept the drip feeding of funding when there are regions desperate for help with basic infrastructure like water connections.
“It is literally stunting our growth.”
Dr Haines pointed out that more than one third of people in Australia lived in regional, rural or remote areas.
“It is beyond time we had a dedicated fund that gives us a fair share of regional housing,” she said.
“My plan will unlock new housing supply and deliver regional Australia their fair share.”
Pointing to the levels of housing stress in Indi, Dr Haines said enabling infrastructure for new builds was key to reducing stress and addressing workforce shortages across Indi.
“In Indi, more than 40 per cent of renters experience rental stress and more than 60 per cent of homeowners are finding it hard to pay the mortgage and juggle their bills.
“For an entire generation of Australians, the prospect of homeownership — or even finding a secure rental — feels out of reach and unattainable.
“This is keenly felt in regional areas. Parents are worried about the financial security for their children in the future.
“We’re losing tens of millions off our local economy each year because there’s nowhere for new workers moving to the regions to live. It’s impacting essential services like nursing, teaching and aged care.”
The Regional Housing Infrastructure Fund proposed by Dr Haines builds on her sustained advocacy in the last term of parliament.
Dr Haines has met with the prime minister, the former and current housing ministers and the infrastructure minister to make the case for investment in enabling infrastructure.
In 2023, Dr Haines introduced legislation to guarantee dedicated funding for enabling infrastructure in regional, rural and remote Australia.
In 2024, Dr Haines introduced an updated ‘Fair Share for Regional Housing Bill’ to make it clear that regional Australia needed a fair share and to centre government action on local governments and community.
Dr Haines has achieved success in amending the government’s housing legislation to ensure there is a regional voice at the table.
The government announced the $500 million Housing Support Program to fund enabling infrastructure just weeks after Dr Haines met with the prime minister.
The Opposition recently announced it would set aside 30 per cent of its housing fund for regional communities, adopting the policy Dr Haines has long advocated for.
“The work I’ve done in the last two years has reaped rewards in getting a focus on the needs of regional Australia, but we can’t stop there,” Dr Haines said.
“I’ve taken legislation to the parliament in the last year to enable local governments, who don’t have the rate base or resources of their city counterparts, to access the funding they need.
“We’ve got funding coming through, but I want to see a bigger, long-term vision for ensuring we have housing security and affordability in regional Australia.”
38°C