Australian Manufacturing Union Urges End to Tax Breaks That Turn Housing into a Wealth Vehicle
Union submission to Senate inquiry calls for phased removal of capital gains tax discount and negative gearing to address inequality and housing affordability
The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union has called for the federal government to end longstanding housing tax concessions that it says have transformed property from a place to live into a mechanism for accumulating and hoarding wealth.
In a detailed submission to a Greens-led Senate inquiry into the fifty per cent capital gains tax discount, the Labour-aligned union argued that existing concessions have “commodified” housing, exacerbated inequality and priced many Australians out of home ownership.
The union’s proposals include an immediate reduction of the capital gains tax discount on investment properties followed by its full phase-out over a two-year period, and an effective abolition of negative gearing by ending the ability of investors to offset rental losses against other income.
The AMWU also suggested replacing the government’s five per cent home deposit scheme with a plan that would allow renters to allocate a portion of their rent toward eventual home purchase, asserting that tax-driven investment incentives have undermined access to secure housing for workers and younger Australians.
According to Treasury projections, the fifty per cent discount is expected to cost the federal budget around 21.8 billion dollars in forgone revenue in 2025–26, a figure that critics of the current tax regime argue could instead finance social and affordable housing or other measures to improve access to the market.
The union’s stance surpasses earlier calls from the Australian Council of Trade Unions to restrict concessions to a single investment property and echoes wider debate from housing advocates and think tanks about the role of tax policy in Australia’s housing affordability crisis.
The Greens and some economic experts have supported reforming the capital gains tax discount as part of broader efforts to tackle speculation and redistribute investment more productively, while conservative voices have defended the simplicity and familiarity of the current concession.
The Senate inquiry is due to report its findings by March seventeenth, setting the stage for a potentially intensified national debate on the future of housing tax policy and its implications for affordability and social equity.
In a detailed submission to a Greens-led Senate inquiry into the fifty per cent capital gains tax discount, the Labour-aligned union argued that existing concessions have “commodified” housing, exacerbated inequality and priced many Australians out of home ownership.
The union’s proposals include an immediate reduction of the capital gains tax discount on investment properties followed by its full phase-out over a two-year period, and an effective abolition of negative gearing by ending the ability of investors to offset rental losses against other income.
The AMWU also suggested replacing the government’s five per cent home deposit scheme with a plan that would allow renters to allocate a portion of their rent toward eventual home purchase, asserting that tax-driven investment incentives have undermined access to secure housing for workers and younger Australians.
According to Treasury projections, the fifty per cent discount is expected to cost the federal budget around 21.8 billion dollars in forgone revenue in 2025–26, a figure that critics of the current tax regime argue could instead finance social and affordable housing or other measures to improve access to the market.
The union’s stance surpasses earlier calls from the Australian Council of Trade Unions to restrict concessions to a single investment property and echoes wider debate from housing advocates and think tanks about the role of tax policy in Australia’s housing affordability crisis.
The Greens and some economic experts have supported reforming the capital gains tax discount as part of broader efforts to tackle speculation and redistribute investment more productively, while conservative voices have defended the simplicity and familiarity of the current concession.
The Senate inquiry is due to report its findings by March seventeenth, setting the stage for a potentially intensified national debate on the future of housing tax policy and its implications for affordability and social equity.
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