In the 2018 federal budget, the Coalition Government launched the $1 billion National Housing Infrastructure Facility (NHIF) to “provide concessional loans, grants and equity investments across five years to local governments to accelerate infrastructure works in new residential areas”.
Like many policies coming from the federal government, this scheme is more spin than substance, with just $370,000 paid out from the fund, despite increased homelessness:
In response to questions on notice from Labor senator Alex Gallacher, the NHFIC said that as of October 27, 2020, just “$0.37 million for capacity building activities” had been delivered under the National Housing Infrastructure Facility.
