Ross Garnaut suggests that housing and tax reforms are essential for enhancing the economic prospects of young people.

Australia risks “giving up on equity” if the government fails to reform housing and tax policies to enhance the economic prospects of younger generations, warns one of the country’s most respected economists.

Experts are increasingly concerned that rising living costs could exacerbate generational inequality, causing growing frustration among young Australians over the current economic conditions.

Ross Garnaut, an emeritus professor of economics at the University of Melbourne with a career in public policy, stated that young people are justified in feeling that the economy is biased against them.

“Especially when you compare the situation with younger Australians when I was their age,” he told The Business. “[It’s] much harder to get housing compared with the days of full employment which I grew up in, [it’s] harder to get a job, and especially if people don’t have high qualifications.”