A Sydney father who broke down on national TV over his family’s dire housing situation has on Thursday set up camp outside Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s multi-million dollar clifftop mansion on New South Wales’ Central Coast.
Morgan Cox pitched a tent outside Mr Albanese’s $4.3 million beachfront property in the Robertson electorate, his set-up decorated with a sign that read: “Everyone deserves a home Albo!!! Costoflivingcasualties.com.au. Tell your story”.
The father-of-three recently appeared on ABC’s Q&A program, revealing that despite working hard at two jobs, he is still struggling with daily bills and faces potential homelessness following a staggering rent hike.
Mr Cox is lobbying for the Australian government to close the border temporarily, allowing struggling Australians better access to the housing market.
The struggling father is angered by the sheer number of Australians living in poverty and uses his social media platforms to call on the Prime Minister, and by extension the government, to curb immigration rates.
A 2022 study found that there are 3.3 million Australians living below the poverty line, including 761,000 children.
“I’m here at Albo’s $4.5 (sic) million mansion, we’ve just turned down his $100 million road, we’re here on behalf of 3.5 million Australians who are struggling, who are in poverty, (who are) facing homelessness,” Mr Cox said.
“All we want is to be heard, all we want is for politicians to listen to us.
“Everyone deserves a home Albo.”
Labor has pledged to build 1.2 million new homes by 2030, but a report from Master Builders Australia said the nation is on target to fall 350,000 houses short of the goal.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed net overseas migration sat at 446,000 in the 2023-24 financial year, enough people to fill Australia’s largest stadium, the Melbourne Cricket Ground, four times.
This marked a reduction from 536,000 the previous year, however, it fell short of the government’s target by 51,000.
In 2023-24, the number of migrant arrivals decreased to 667,000, down by 10 per cent from 739,000 the previous year.
Migrant departures also increased by 8 per cent in the financial year, up 221,000 from 204,000 the year before.
The highest influx in a 12-month period was in September 2023, when 556,000 people were welcomed to the country.