Rental support
Sam HIBBINS (Prahran) (15:46): We need to freeze rents for people in Prahran. The rental crisis is out of control. Rents have already risen by around 20 per cent and are forecast to rise even further this year, adding to the skyrocketing cost of living. There is a massive lack of affordable rental properties right across Melbourne, pushing people even further to the margins and adding to the increasing number of people experiencing homelessness and housing stress. The state government needs to implement a two-year freeze on rent increases and put permanent caps on rent increases to stop unfair and out-of-control rent rises. I have heard from renters in Prahran who are struggling with affordability, struggling with homes in poor condition and struggling with a lack of maintenance. There is so much more to be done to give renters more rights and make sure that everyone has an affordable place to call home, like increasing supply through short-stay regulation and strengthening the vacancy tax; improving rental standards like energy efficiency, cooling and heating, and access to solar for renters; and longer term leases and protections. This is a crisis that requires immediate and significant government action and not sitting idly by and watching it go past.