A damning new report prepared for the Albanese Government reveals almost two-thirds of homelessness providers are turning away desperate Australians they would once have helped, with some rejecting as many people as they take in. Source: The Age.
The findings expose a system so overwhelmed by soaring rents, chronic housing shortages and inadequate funding that it is increasingly unable to offer even emergency accommodation to people facing life on the streets.
The University of NSW research, titled Breaking the Firestorm, found 91 per cent of frontline services had experienced increased demand over the past two years, while just 0.4 per cent reported a decline.
Despite unprecedented pressure, official figures show just 3.9 per cent of clients who needed long-term housing received it in 2024-25.
The figures form part of the briefing from Homelessness Australia prepared ahead of the government’s Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook, warning that years of policy failure have created a crisis now feeding on itself.
More than nine in 10 providers blame deteriorating rental affordability for the surge in demand, while 86 per cent say finding permanent accommodation has become harder in the past two years.
Homelessness Australia is calling for 34,000 new social homes annually, income support payments increased to at least $600 a week, substantially more federal funding for frontline services, and 20,000 permanent supportive housing places for people with serious mental illness and other complex needs.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has conceded he is confronting a deteriorating fiscal outlook, with federal debt forecast to climb beyond $1.2 trillion by 2030 and cumulative budget deficits of $150.5 billion projected over five years.
Rising global borrowing costs threaten to add billions more to the government’s interest bill, further restricting its capacity to respond to mounting demands for spending.
University of NSW researcher Andrew Clarke said the figures were the worst he had encountered.
“The system is under extreme pressure,” he said. “Homelessness support services are swimming upstream against an ever faster current.”
A spokeswoman for Housing Minister Clare O’Neil said the government had invested $1.2 billion to support 50,000 vulnerable Australians, including more than 1000 new crisis and transitional accommodation places for women, children and young people fleeing domestic violence.
But the government stopped short of committing additional funding to address the worsening crisis, saying future decisions would be made through the usual mid-year budget and budget processes.
FULL STORY
Homelessness crisis hits breaking point as services turn away desperate Australians (By Rob Harris, The Age)
