Housing Minister Dismisses Netanyahu's "Weak Leader" Attack on Albanese
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Housing Minister Clare O'Neil dismissed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's characterization of Anthony Albanese as a "weak leader" Wednesday, describing the comments as "disappointing" while defending the government's approach to Middle East diplomacy.
O'Neil told ABC News the Australian government would not engage in diplomatic retaliation, despite Netanyahu's public criticism of the prime minister's handling of Australia-Israel relations.
"These are really disappointing comments, James, and this kind of diplomacy just doesn't work," O'Neil said during a morning television interview. "And the Australian government's certainly not going to engage in an unseemly tit-for-tat with an elected leader on the other side of the world."
The minister emphasized Albanese's diplomatic approach as "respectful, well-mannered, but also very robust" while defending Australia's position on Middle East policy.
"We've taken a strong position on what's going on in the Middle East, and that's because this is an issue that many Australians feel very strongly about," O'Neil said. "People are watching from afar, but seeing many innocent people lose their lives, and in particular, children who are being subjected to forced starvation and violence in a war in which they have no blame and no part."
International Pattern of Criticism
O'Neil noted that Netanyahu had made "similarly inappropriate comments about world leaders in Canada and the UK and France," characterizing the criticism as typical of the Israeli leader's approach.
"This is the way that he does his business as the leader of Israel. That's his right. It's just not our focus," O'Neil said. "Our attention is on making sure that Australia does what it does best on the global stage and that is act for peace and justice."
The minister highlighted domestic concerns about importing Middle East tensions into Australia's multicultural communities.
"I represent a really multicultural community and a lot of people who I represent came to Australia because they didn't want to be a part of conflicts like what's going on in the Middle East and we need to make a lot of effort to make sure that we don't import the kind of violence and negativity that's associated with this," O'Neil said.
When asked whether Australia still shared values with Israel's government, O'Neil deferred to Foreign Minister Penny Wong while emphasizing Australia's national interest approach to international relations.
Housing Crisis Dominates Domestic Agenda
O'Neil shifted focus to Australia's housing affordability crisis, acknowledging the severity of challenges facing young buyers as median house prices reach 1.2 million dollars in Sydney, 800,000 dollars in Melbourne and over 900,000 dollars in Brisbane.
"That's what young people around the country tell me every single day," O'Neil said when asked if home ownership had become unrealistic for young Australians. "We've got a generation of kids growing up in our country who can see very plainly that they don't have the same housing opportunities as their parents and grandparents."
The minister described a broader demographic shift affecting housing security across age groups.
"I've got people in my community who are parents in their 40s who are renting and being moved from property to property. A generation or two ago in Australia, they would absolutely have owned their own home," O'Neil said.
O'Neil characterized the crisis as unprecedented in scope, claiming the government represented the first since the post-war period to comprehensively address national housing challenges.
"These are the reasons why our government is the first government since the post-war period to seriously sit up and say we've got a national housing crisis on our hands and we're going to tackle that from every angle," she said.
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Supply-Side Focus Drives Policy
The minister emphasized supply shortages as the primary driver of housing unaffordability, defending the government's 43 billion dollar investment strategy focused on construction rather than demand-side interventions.
"There's no question that the principal problem that we confront today in Australia is that we have a housing shortage, James," O'Neil said. "For all the complexities with what's going on in the housing market, the reason for all the problems that I listed at the beginning of our interview is that for 40 years we haven't been building enough homes."
O'Neil described the challenge as requiring sustained long-term commitment to increased construction rates.
"We have today an old-fashioned housing shortage in our country that can only be repaired by building homes faster than we ever have before and doing it over a sustained period of time," she said.
Tax Policy Remains Unchanged
When questioned about property investment tax concessions including negative gearing and capital gains discounts, O'Neil confirmed the government had no plans for changes.
"We don't have plans to change those taxes, James, and that's because it's not the main game," O'Neil said, dismissing suggestions the decision reflected political concerns about landlord backlash.
The minister maintained that tax arrangements were not the primary cause of housing unaffordability.
"The main game here is a supply problem. I'm not making this up. This is the absolute facts show us that the reason that we have a housing crisis is not because of tax arrangements that are made here in Australia. It's because for 40 years, we haven't been building enough homes," O'Neil said.
Government Claims Construction Success
O'Neil defended the government's housing record since taking office, citing construction and assistance figures as evidence of progress.
"In that time, half a million homes have been built. 175,000 young people get into their first home with our government's backing. A million Australians have gotten a 45% increase in Commonwealth rent assistance, and we've got 28,000 social and affordable homes in construction or planning right now," O'Neil said.
She contrasted current construction targets with previous government performance, claiming significant improvements in social housing delivery.
"We're building 55,000 social and affordable homes over a five-year period. The Coalition, in nine years, built 373," O'Neil said.
The minister acknowledged housing affordability would remain a long-term challenge requiring sustained government commitment beyond electoral cycles.
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