Politics · Australia · 8 hrs ago
Voters favour Coalition housing plan over Labor’s activity centres
A survey found 47 per cent of voters favour the Coalition’s housing plan for Melbourne, compared with one in four who prefer Labor’s policy.
The Coalition plan would speed up housing development on Melbourne’s outer fringes and extend the capital city zone into more inner suburbs.
Labor’s activity centre policy targets 60 neighbourhoods near public transport for high-density apartments, aiming to make room for 300,000 homes by 2051.
The survey was conducted in the first week of November, and 28 per cent of respondents were unsure or had no preference.
The debate matters to residents such as Mount Atkinson mother Jaksha Shah, whose estate has few transport links and no timeline for a planned railway station.
Shah says housing growth needs timely transport infrastructure so outer-suburb communities are not left behind.
The Coalition says it would scrap Labor’s program, return planning controls to councils and speed up planning for 27 outer-Melbourne areas.
If elected, it would also expand the city zone, but the new zone’s boundaries are not yet final.
A survey found that 47 per cent of voters prefer the Coalition’s housing plan to Labor’s activity centre program.
One in four respondents preferred Labor’s plan for high-density apartments near public transport, while 28 per cent were unsure or had no preference.
The Coalition proposes fast-tracking housing in outer suburbs and expanding the capital city zone to more inner suburbs.
Labor’s program encourages high-density apartment building in 60 neighbourhoods near public transport hubs.
The survey was conducted in the first week of November, ahead of Victoria’s election.
- Who
- Victorian voters surveyed by The Age’s Resolve Political Monitor.
- What
- More voters preferred the Coalition’s housing proposal than Labor’s activity centre program.
- When
- The survey was conducted in the first week of November 2026.
- Where
- Melbourne and Victoria.
- Why
- The proposals aim to address housing pressures.
The Coalition
Labor
Housing approach
The Coalition
Fast-track greenfield housing in outer suburbs and expand the capital city zone to more inner suburbs.
Labor
Encourage high-density apartment building in 60 neighbourhoods near public transport hubs.
Activity centre program
The Coalition
Scrap the program and return planning controls to councils and communities.
Labor
Maintain the program to encourage development around transport hubs.
The Resolve Political Monitor surveyed voters about the housing proposals.
The Age’s visual stories team developed 3D visualisations of how suburbs could change under Labor’s policy.
- Coalition plan preference
- 47 per cent of voters
- Labor plan preference
- One in four voters
- Unsure or no preference
- 28 per cent
- Labor activity centre program
- High-density apartments in 60 neighbourhoods near public transport hubs
- Labor housing target
- Space for 300,000 new homes by 2051
What people are saying
Nobody tells us when we look at these plans that none of this is approved or they’re years away.
To date, both major parties have failed in putting up timely infrastructure like trains and buses for us, so for me the biggest question is: how is this going to get executed so growth communities are not left behind? Does this mean that they will put infrastructure first, prioritise that and then allow housing to be built around it?