There was something quietly remarkable about a moment in question time this week. It was subtle, so subtle it was largely missed.

But in response to obvious racial dog whistling from the Coalition, a Labor minister explicitly called it out.

In response to the LNP MP Henry Pike, who is part of Queensland’s uber-conservative faction, who asked whether it was true 51,000 non-citizens had accessed the help-to-buy scheme, Housing Minister Clare O’Neil actually addressed the substantive issue:

“The member opposite asks about the role of migrants in this. Let me be really clear: Temporary migrants to Australia are not eligible for this program. I just want to be really clear for the parliament about who is eligible: Australian citizens and permanent residents of our country.

“I don’t want to be personal about the honourable member opposite, because I understand how tactics committees work, and I understand how that piece of paper ended up in his hands. But I just want to be really clear for Australians: Permanent residents are not the cause of the challenges facing our country on housing, and any attempt to assert that they are is wrong. Those opposite can continue racing to the bottom against One Nation. But I’ll tell you what: You can’t ‘out-One Nation’ One Nation. You’re never going to be Pauline Hanson. I think it’s time that you accept it.

“I think we’ve clarified here that the people that the member opposite is talking about are permanent residents of our country. So let me say again that those opposite can point the finger and blame the problems facing our country on permanent residents. That is not the position of those of us on this side of the chamber. What we see is communities of people,........

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