Yesterday, I reported on an outlandish plan reported in the Economic Times of India, the Hindustan Times, the Business Standard, and other Indian media outlets to have Indian workers/migrants build Australian homes.
“Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday said that India is in “deep negotiations” to create 1 million homes in Australia and has reached out to the UAE for financing the project”, the Economic Times of India reported.
“The Commerce and Industry Minister said that this is a project worth $500 billion”.
“I am in deep negotiation with my counterpart in Australia to create 1 million homes. 1 million homes. Anybody wants to do the maths? A million homes in Australia would be at least USD 500 billion opportunity”, Minister Piyush Goyal said.
“Goyal further said India is proposing to allow Indian workers to get trained in Australia on necessary skill sets required to build homes as per local standards and create the housing”, the Times reported.
However, last night I was informed by a government source that “this plan has not been raised with them”.
The plot thickens today, with a video emerging on Twitter (X) of Indian minister Piyush Goyal spruiking the plan for “hundreds of thousands” of Indians to build Australian homes:
The Indian Sun also posted the below image of Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell in negotiation with Piyush Goyal:
“The prospect of India’s role in Australia’s housing sector marks an unusual intersection of domestic policy challenges in Australia with India’s broader push to expand its global trade and labour partnerships”, the Sun reported.
“As reported by PTI, Goyal’s comments signal an ambition to position India not only as a goods exporter but as a skilled workforce provider in one of Australia’s most pressing policy areas”.
This is truly extraordinary stuff, assuming it is real and not merely bluster and hopium from Minister Piyush Goyal.
Australia is suffering from a chronic housing shortage because, for two decades, population demand via excessive immigration has run ahead of housing supply.
Instead of slowing the flow of immigration to balance population demand with the supply of housing, infrastructure, and services, this plan (if true) would suggest that the Albanese government is seeking more Indian migration to build homes for migrants while bolstering Labor’s vote.
The Albanese government needs to make an official public statement denying Minister Piyush Goyal’s claims.
