Jane Hume, ‘A stake in Australia’ The Homeownership Dilemma

At the heart of Robert Menzies’s vision for Australia was the home. He believed that homeownership gave people a stake in the country, encouraged habits of thrift and forethought and acted as the bedrock of patriotism. In his ‘Forgotten People’ radio address he went so far as to suggest that homes could be spiritually uplifting; giving people a sense of independence that facilitated them to act with moral conviction. As prime minister, he followed through that romanticism with practical achievement, which saw homeownership rates rise above 70%. But in modern Australian, the Menzian dream is increasingly unobtainable for many, and this demographic shift towards renting could have dire consequences for centre-right parties. Joining us to discuss solutions is Senator Jane Hume.

Want to learn more? Read about how the Menzies Government managed to achieve major homeownership increases despite maintaining a consistently high immigration rate.

Want to hear more? Watch Senator Hume’s speech launching the book Markets and Prosperity earlier this year.

Bonus fact:

At the 1906 federal election, Robert Menzies’s uncle and political mentor Sydney Sampson argued that the antidote to socialism was to ensure that over 50% of people owned their own property.

Senator the Hon Jane Hume is a Liberal Senator for Victoria and Shadow Minister for Finance, the Public Service, and Shadow Special Minister of State. Jane was elected as a Liberal Senator for Victoria in 2016. Upon her election, she was appointed Chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Economics. Following the 2019 election, Jane was appointed Assistant Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and Financial Technology. Then in 2020, she was promoted to the position of Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and Digital Economy. In 2021, her responsibilities were expanded again, and she became the first Minister for Women's Economic Security during the Morrison Government.