The Greens have kept Labor at the negotiating table by joining with the opposition and crossbench Senators to block the government’s attempts to ram through its housing bill.
The government moved a motion on Wednesday to restrict Senate debate only to the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund with an aim to pass the bill by 1pm on Thursday.
But amid ongoing negotiations, the Greens and independent Senator David Pocock joined with the Coalition and One Nation to block the hours motion 42 to 23.
The Jacqui Lambie Network was the government’s only crossbench support.
Labor’s flagship election policy will finance the build of 30,000 new social and affordable homes in five years if passed.
Finance Minister and deputy leader of the government in the Senate Katy Gallagher confirmed shortly after that the bill would not go to a vote this week.
“The Greens have just voted with the Libs/Nats in the Senate to prevent a vote this week on Labor’s Housing Fund that would see 30,000 social & affordable houses built,” Ms Gallagher said on Twitter.
“It makes no sense that the @Greens would block these laws from passing parliament this week!”
Housing Minister Julie Collins hit back at the crossbench, insisting the government had “worked constructively” across the Parliament to improve the bill.
“This bill can’t be delayed any longer. Senators who say they support more social and affordable homes need to stop the delays and pass the bill this week,” Ms Collins said.
“The Fund is backed by numerous stakeholders, including housing experts, community housing providers, Housing Ministers from across the country, and numerous crossbenchers across the Parliament.”
The Greens accused Labor of trying to “gag debate” while arguing the bill failed to address the dire living conditions facing Australia’s 5.5 million renters.
Max Chandler-Mather, the party’s housing spokesman, has also said the bill did not provide an increased guaranteed spend on public and affordable housing.
“We’re in a once-in-a-generation housing crisis and the government playing politics with housing in the Senate shows they don’t understand or don’t care that people are stuck in housing hell,” Mr Chandler-Mather said in a statement on Wednesday.
“We warned the government not to bring the Bill on before they’d come up with a real plan for renters and an increased guaranteed spend on public and affordable housing. Instead they tried to ram it through after only 45 mins of debate.
“Our message to Labor is we will pass this bill straight away if you work with the states to get a freeze on rent increases and guarantee 5 billion to build public and genuinely affordable housing.”
The Coalition has steadfastly refused to support the fund, arguing the off-budget spending would be inflationary.
But the Greens have faced growing backlash to its continued role as a roadblock to the bill.
During Sky News Australia’s budget coverage on Tuesday night, Senator Jacqui Lambie unleashed on the Greens’ finance spokeswoman Barbara Pocock in a heated debate over the housing bill.
Ms Lambie said the minor party was failing the country’s homeless people by refusing to use its large balance of power to pass the bill immediately.
“But the thing is if you don’t start building these houses now, you’re going to have more people out there,” she said, waving her finger at the Greens Senator.
“You need to start doing something now, you have the biggest balance of power in that bloody Senate up there, that’s what you have.
“When you want to stop people from having a roof over their head that is disgusting.”
The government’s next opportunity to hold a vote on the bill will be in mid-June.
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