Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has stepped in to ward off speculation that the tax-exempt status of the family home could be abolished.

Albanese has emphatically said it will not happen, “because it is a bad idea”.

The issue arose as media began speculating on what tax cuts Treasurer Jim Chalmers may make this year.

Some suggest Negative Gearing could soon be in the Government’s sights but Albanese says that they have announced everything they are doing and that didn’t include changes to Negative Gearing.

Former Labor leader, Bill Shorten, took a policy to limit negative gearing to new properties to the electorate when he ran as leader in 2019.

Labor scrapped its policy on changing negative gearing after it lost that election.

Many investors left the market during the Covid induced property boom, taking advantage of growing prices. Analysts say touching negative gearing would make the rental crisis even worse, as more investors would sell up.