patjennings
Vice Captain
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2024
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Housing was stuffed 50 years ago. The Henderson report tried to address it which Whitlam responded to. When Whitlam was dismissed a lot of the gains were lost or diluted and it has gotten worse more or less ever since.
Housing-Specific Recommendations
Henderson made 12 major housing policy proposals, including:
Government Response (Pre- and Post-Dismissal)
Result: Public housing as % of total stock fell from 4.5% (1976) to <3% by 1983.
Housing-Specific Recommendations
Henderson made 12 major housing policy proposals, including:
- Massive public housing expansion
→ Build 50,000 new public homes over 5 years (a ~50% increase in stock). - Commonwealth–State Housing Agreement (CSHA) overhaul
→ Increase federal funding; tie it to poverty reduction targets. - Rent assistance for private tenants
→ Introduce a national rent supplement for low-income renters (foreshadowing today’s CRA). - Home ownership support
→ Low-interest loans and deposit assistance for first-home buyers on low incomes. - Boarding house & emergency accommodation
→ Fund refuges and upgrade substandard lodging houses. - Indigenous-specific housing programs
→ Community-controlled building in remote and urban areas. - Zoning and land release
→ Pressure states to release cheap land to reduce urban sprawl costs.
Government Response (Pre- and Post-Dismissal)
| Period | Action on Housing | Link to Henderson |
|---|---|---|
| Whitlam (1972–75) | • Doubled CSHA funding (1973–75) | |
| • Launched Department of Urban & Regional Development (DURD) | ||
| • Began area improvement programs (e.g., Glebe, Emerald Hill) | Strong alignment — treated housing as anti-poverty infrastructure. | |
| Fraser (1975–83) | • Cut CSHA funding by 25% in real terms | |
| • Sold off public housing stock | ||
| • Ended DURD in 1975 | Reversal — housing shifted from social right to market commodity. |
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