Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is under fire after splurging on a multi-million-dollar cliff-top beachfront home in Copacabana, New South Wales, just months from an election in which cost of living and housing affordability are the biggest concerns. Selling for A$4.3 million (around $2.9 million or £2.2 million) last month, the property boasts four bedrooms, three bathrooms, and a panoramic view, although the purchase has yet to settle.
Criticism that has rained from either side of the political divide has followed this move. The opponents described it as “tone deaf.” Even some members from Albanese’s Labour Party came out in amazement, such that they described their reaction as “gobsmacked,” according to reports from local media.
Pointing out that he is only too aware of financial struggles by way of his childhood in the public housing, Albanese assured: “I know what it’s like, which is why I want to help all Australians into a home.” He added that the purchase was motivated by a desire to get closer to his fiancée Jodie Haydon’s family on the Central Coast.
Regardless, the Albanese government has floated an investment fund worth A$10 billion that targets social and affordable housing. This has, however been slowed down as it faces resistance from Australian Greens and some independents who demand more aggressive policies on housing.
Australian cities rank among the world’s least affordable, according to the 2024 Demographia International Housing Affordability survey with Sydney second only to Hong Kong. Some two-thirds of Australian households own their homes, but close to 95 percent of sitting federal politicians have reportedly at least one residential property with about one-third of them owning three or more.
Needless to say, critics within the Labor Party haven’t been reticent. One anonymous MP called the purchase by Albanese an act of “self-sabotage,” particularly with regard to the elections going to be held against Greens candidates. Greens housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather called out this imbalance in the housing market; he criticized the system which lets some property investors buy multi-million dollar homes while most Australians cannot afford to rent their own place or buy a home to live in their lifetime.
Liberal Senator Jane Hume allowed the right to a personal life but questioned the timing, stating that the “move is tone deaf during a housing crisis.” Opposition Leader Dutton took a wide berth around direct criticism of Albanese and said more about universal issues most Aussies have with their mortgage.
As the debate continues, implications of Albanese’s decision are most likely going to ring through the forthcoming election; house remains one of the most critical issues for all those voters across Australia.