The government has again defended its housing tax changes included in the budget after a fresh report suggested house prices fell again in June. Follow all the updates in our live blog. Collapse all postsWed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:57amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:57amAlbanese doesn't think Treasury got it wrong on house pricesBy Courtney GouldPrime Minister Anthony Albanese isn't concerned the government's housing tax changes will have a bigger impact than initially expected amid a cooling in the housing market.The national median house price fell by 0.4 per cent in June, the largest month-on-month drop since 2022.Albanese won't say if he thinks a drop in prices is a good thing, but he tells ABC News Breakfast it's "great news" that investors aren't outbidding first home buyers at auctions.The PM is, perhaps unsurprisingly, sticking by Treasury modelling that house prices will continue to grow, albeit at a slower rate, due to the scaling back of the capital gains tax discount and negative gearing.Asked if he thinks Treasury may have got it wrong, Albanese responds: "No, it's not.""Treasury forecasts aren't week by week, they're serious forecasts done based upon modelling and a range of other economic modelling showing exactly the same thing," he says."You don't assess things like property on a day–to–day basis. What you do is assess what will happen, and Treasury has done that. As a result of these changes, there will be increase in the value of houses, it will be slightly less, 2 per cent to be precise, than it would have been otherwise."Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:40amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:40amCoalition accuses government of 'crashing' economyBy Courtney GouldShadow Treasurer Tim Wilson is placing the blame for a drop in house prices on the government.Speaking with Sky News, Wilson accuses Treasurer Jim Chalmers of having "crashed the confidence of the Australian economy" with his budget.Wilson also says that despite the government's argument that scaling back the capital gains tax discount and negative gearing will help young people, that isn't the case."I'm told that banks are saying there's not a lot of debt being issued to young people trying to buy a home," he says.The Liberal frontbencher adds that he thinks house prices will "eventually" recover, but only because migration and housing targets are not in line."The government is, according to its own budget documents, building 35,000 fewer homes while they're overshooting their migration target. So, there'll eventually be a recovery," he says.Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:29amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:29am'A bit befuddling': Butler on speculation he's next in line to lead LaborBy Courtney GouldCircling back to Mark Butler's interview on ABC's News Breakfast for a moment.There's been a lot of chatter in recent months about whether the South Australian MP could be anointed as Anthony Albanese's successor when he decides to retire.Butler is a senior member of Labor's left faction and is one of the PM's key allies.But he says he has "no idea" why his name keeps being thrown around as a potential future leader."It's all a bit befuddling," he said."We're only a year into a term where our prime minister, Anthony Albanese, won a really significant victory with a really big agenda that we're all working together to deliver in incredibly tough times."Our job as a team that has the privilege of governing this country is to work together under a leader in Anthony Albanese that I feel privileged to support."Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:27amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:27amWhat's new from today?By Courtney GouldIt's the start of a new financial year, so you know what that means: a bunch of new measures will start rolling out.From today, the government says more than 14 million Australians will get a tax cut of up to $268 dollars.Paid parental leave expands from 24 weeks to a full six months, while major supermarkets such as Coles and Woolworths are now subject to new laws tackling price gouging.The three-month halving of the fuel excise has come to an end, with the discount dropping to 16 cents per litre as the Heavy Vehicle Road User Charge rises to 16 cents per litre.Both measures are expected to taper off completely in August.Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:23amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:23amCooling house prices not due to budget but 'cyclical market': O'NeilBy Courtney GouldHousing Minister Clare O'Neil was also grilled about the latest monthly house price data.Property data firm Cotality reports national home values fell 0.4 per cent in June — the biggest monthly decline since December 2022. Sydney and Melbourne led the downturn.O'Neil stuck pretty close to the Labor lines when questioned by Seven this morning, also reiterating that house prices will continue to grow over the medium term."This is a cyclical market, and the main thing that drives movement in house prices from month to month and year to year is what goes on with interest rates," she said.She said the housing tax changes included in the budget (restricting negative gearing to newly built homes and replacing the 50 per cent capital gains discount with an inflation-indexed model) were about levelling the playing field in the market."The Treasury modelling shows us the impact of the government's tax changes will have a modest affordability effect on the market," she says.Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:02amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 7:02am'Prices will continue to grow': Butler 'confident' in Treasury modellingBy Courtney GouldHealth Minister Mark Butler has again backed the modelling underpinning the government's housing tax package, despite a drop in house prices.According to property data firm Cotality, dwelling values fell 0.4 per cent nationally in June.Butler told ABC's News Breakfast that it was normal for house prices to "jump around a little bit", but he didn't think that was a result of changes in the budget.Rather, a softening in prices and auction clearance rates was due to interest rate rises, and the "biggest hit" the Iran war caused to consumer confidence had a greater impact.The Labor frontbencher said he was "very confident" in Treasury's modelling. The modelling included in the budget suggests house prices will continue to rise, albeit at a slower rate."They've thought about it very carefully. The history of house prices in Australia is one of growth ... and that doesn't mean there won't be a week here or a week there that you get particular numbers," he said."But we're very confident in Treasury's forecasts. House prices, house values for existing owners, will continue to grow."They'll just grow a little bit more softly for a period than otherwise would have happened."Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 6:55amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 6:55amHousing market weakened further in JuneBy Lin LinThe biggest monthly decline in home values in more than three years has been recorded as the housing market slowdown that began in Sydney and Melbourne spreads across the country.According to property data firm Cotality, dwelling values fell 0.4 per cent nationally in June.Sydney led the decline, falling by 1.2 per cent, while Melbourne values dropped 1 per cent.The once-booming markets of Brisbane and Perth are still rising, but at a much slower pace. Adelaide was flat, suggesting momentum is waning in almost every capital city.Read more at the link below.Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 6:51amWed 1 Jul 2026 at 6:51amGood morning 👋By Courtney GouldHi friends, welcome to our politics live blog. I'm Courtney Gould from the ABC's Parliament House team, here to guide you through the day.From house prices, to consultancy firms, gambling reforms and the start of the new financial year, it's all going on today.So, without further ado let's jumps straight into it.