Australia’s political landscape is closely contested. Now the claims about the housing crisis and other government spending are coming under scrutiny. Michael Fotheringham is managing director of the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute. He elaborated on these concerns earlier this month in an interview with AAP FactCheck. He vigorously defended against the notion that a housing crisis attributable to any one government is “absolute rot,” his exact words. He reiterated the point that this crisis has been 40 years in the making.
Fotheringham’s statement follows claims made by opposition leader Peter Dutton that the net-zero target should be abandoned. Dutton argued that the Labor government’s increased migration had worsened the housing crisis. As Fotheringham contends, blaming the crisis on the last three decades of misguided policy is an overly simplistic approach to a complicated problem that has decades-old underpinnings.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is on the defensive in the healthcare world. Critics have pushed back against his claim that the previous government’s bulk-billing rates were at a “free-fall” when Labor came to power. Though repeated often, fact-checks have determined that this claim is indeed false. In reality, bulk-billing rates have continued to fall at a quicker rate since Labor’s election. These statements show the stark contrast. This exemplifies a growing trend of concern over the quality of information and claims shown during this important period.
Dutton has promised to reduce what he refers to as “wasteful spending.” He hasn’t detailed what he would even want to define as wasteful. This ambiguity begs the question whether large promises like this are even possible, or if they’re meant to be transparent.
Meanwhile, misinformation has proliferated on social media. A video circulating online appears to feature fabricated quotes attributed to Albanese, suggesting that his party will preference the Greens. Albanese moved quickly to distance himself from these assertions. He pointed out that it’s the party’s organisational wing that decides preferences, not him.
A false, misleading claim has emerged. It claims that Australia has been without a proper head of state since October 2023, adding to the confusion with a slippery acid test of political discourse.
