Clare O’Neil admits mass migration is making housing unaffordable

Friday 29 May 2026

Australia’s housing minister said the quiet bit out loud when she admitted that the tax changes to negative gearing and the capital gains tax won’t do much for housing affordability.

Rather, O’Neil said that Australia’s inability to build enough homes for its ballooning population is the main cause of the nation’s housing affordability problems.

Stephen Johnson at The Nightly transcribed the key quotes from O’Neil from her interview on ABC TV’s New Breakfast program:

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About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.