Barnaby Joyce has rushed to clarify his own suggestion that One Nation would force permanent Australian residents to sell their homes or face government seizure, as an embarrassing saga unfolded in Sky News' studios.
Joyce's Initial Claim
The New England MP told Sky News host Andrew Bolt on Thursday night that home ownership should be restricted solely to Australian citizens. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson had previously stated she would look to stop foreign ownership of housing indefinitely and give foreign owners two years to sell. If houses were not sold, they would be repossessed by the federal government, according to her policy.
Mr Joyce told Bolt it meant permanent residents would have to sell their houses as well. "Commit yourself totally to this nation and your problems are solved, but if you want to have a foot in two camps, then in two camps you'll have your feet – become an Australian citizen," he said.
Bolt asked Mr Joyce if he was sure the exclusion policy applied to the around 400,000 permanent residents in Australia, as well as foreign owners. Mr Joyce said it did. "That's my belief in the policy, it does," he said. "We want to make it that you become... an Australian citizen... and that will, that's going to deal with the issue, isn't it? Become an Australian citizen."
Swift Clarification
However, shortly after the interview, Mr Joyce called back into Sky News Australia to ask if he could answer the question again. He had discussed the non-policy with his colleagues before deciding he needed to correct himself. "On further investigation and discussion," Mr Joyce said, "no, we are not going to be kicking permanent residents out of their house."
One Nation has been criticised for its policy offering, both by pundits and the major parties. The party's leadership, however, staunchly denies it fails to offer a real alternative to the current government.
Mr Bolt called the question back into focus on Thursday night. "Now this shows a couple of things: One Nation is literally making up policy as it goes along, and the second, Joyce initially assumed One Nation's policy on non-citizens owning property here was the most extreme interpretation of Hanson's ambiguous statement," Mr Bolt said at the conclusion of the interview.
"And my moral dilemma? Well, I could have played you the calls that Barnaby made in our studio to clarify things and got a big media splash and lots of clicks. But that of course, would be unfair to Barnaby, I had indicated our interview was over. On the other hand, I could have saved Barnaby some embarrassment with some editing... but then I would not have been straight with you. So showing what I've shown, let the chips fall where they may, and you can decide for yourself, is One Nation ready for government?"
Broader Context
It comes as Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg questioned the government on Thursday over previous reports about 51,000 permanent residents had accessed Australia's first homeowners' scheme. Tim Ayres defended the inclusion of permanent residents in the benefit, given many of them have strong and long-held ties in the Australian community.
Mr Joyce on Thursday told Bolt he disagreed with the government's stance. "We want Australians to be in a house," he said. "They tell about the benevolence of the people who come here, of who gets the benefit of the largesse of the taxpayer, but they don't talk about the Australians who miss out. Now, if you're not an Australian citizen, I think we've got some very serious questions to ask whether we subsidise you into a house at the expense of other people who are Australian citizens."
The home ownership scheme figures emerged during Senate estimates on Wednesday night, where Coalition senators questioned why a program originally designed to help Australians buy their first home was opened to permanent residents. The scheme allows eligible buyers to purchase a property with a deposit as low as five per cent, with the Commonwealth guaranteeing part of the loan. If a borrower defaults, taxpayers can ultimately be exposed to losses through the guarantee arrangement.
The Albanese government expanded eligibility to permanent residents in 2023; however, temporary visa holders remain excluded. Government officials told Senate estimates more than 51,000 non-citizens have since accessed the scheme, about 13 per cent of the total number of participants. The disclosure prompted a heated exchange between Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg and Assistant Minister for Future Made in Australia Tim Ayres.
