Thursday, 19 February 2026

 Aiv PUGLIELLI (North-Eastern Metropolitan) (18:19): (2335) My adjournment matter is to the Minister for Consumer Affairs, and the action I seek is that he implement rent controls that tie rent increases to wages, because, guess what, rent caps work. In the ACT, the only jurisdiction that limits rent increases, rental costs have kept pace with wages, which makes it more likely that renters will be able to afford their housing costs. Everywhere else rents continue to increase at rates far higher than wages, and people continue to be left in housing stress. Here in this state it has never been less affordable to rent than it is right now. Rents have increased twice as much as wages over the last five years, and people are really struggling to keep up. They are endlessly chasing this ball that they just cannot catch. We need the Labor government to step in and ban unlimited rent rises. We need the Labor government to stand up to the property industry and dodgy real estate agents. We need to tie rent increases to wages so that rents can only increase if wages do, because otherwise there is nothing stopping landlords from continuing to push up rents and nothing stopping renters from continuing to be pushed to the brink just to afford their home. Only the Greens will implement rent caps to make renting affordable.