“We are always pleased when the Government listens to the DLP. “ - Tony Zegenhagen
On 23 February 2010, Peter Kavanagh DLP Member for Western Victoria said in the Victorian Legislative Council:
".... last month it was revealed that because of changes made by the federal cabinet to visa requirements 40 per cent of the best houses in the best suburbs of Melbourne are now being bought by non-residents, in many cases people who have never even been to Melbourne. The agents, who do not have a very strong interest in opposing this -- quite the opposite -- tell us that a lot of these people, who are often officials of the Chinese Communist Party, cannot be bothered renting out the properties for what to them is a rather paltry amount of money and they leave the houses locked up, empty, for years on end in the hope of getting a big capital gain at the end. It is absolutely outrageous in my opinion that people who have never even been to Australia are speculating on our homes at the expense of Australian families. I believe that should be changed."
Queensland’s DLP Senate Team Leader Tony Zegenhagen issued a media release which was posted on 20 April 2010 to the DLP websitge www.dlp.org.au, headed: ”Foreign speculators ruin the market for home buyers and renters.”
Tony Zegenhagen announced that the DLP would host a conference of all interested parties in Brisbane during the month of May 2010, with the aim of defining the scope of the problem and recommending appropriate policy responses.
In response to the DLP’s concerns, and faced with a rising level of public anxiety about the issue, the Rudd Government on Saturday 24 April decided to tighten its regulations on foreign buyers.
Tony Zegenhagen said: “We are always pleased when the Government listens to the DLP. This is a step forward, and I look forward to Government and Opposition paying close attention to DLP policies on many other issues, including privatisation, child care and immigration.”
