Labor said it was waiting on the Pre Election Fiscal Outlook on Wednesday and the Parliamentary Budget Office to update the costings of all of its major policies.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said Labor were now changing what had been inaccurate figures.

“Chris Bowen and Labor were caught out last week relying on dodgy assumptions as the basis for their housing tax. Today they’ve been exposed in their attempt to cover their tracks," Mr Cormann said.

The leaders’ election moves over the campaign Financial Review

"The error that Labor have deleted from the document related to a significant underestimation of the extent of investment in newly-built housing and therefore an overstatement of the revenue that might be raised by its plan to end negative gearing on established property," Mr Cormann said.

The previous version of the Labor website said negative gearing was not doing enough to increase new housing stock.

"Negative gearing and the capital gains discount have not achieved their aim to boost housing supply and encourage the building of more new houses."

"The most recent Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows that 93 per cent of new investment loans go to people purchasing existing housing stock," the website previously said. Now there is no longer a figure provided.


Labor's website used to say the vast bulk of investment did not increase supply or boost jobs.

"All it does is increase demand and the price of the existing homes, allowing investors to use tax subsidies to outbid owner occupiers and first home buyers from existing properties," it said.

Mr Bowen told ABC's Insiders earlier this month that: "People say negative gearing is necessary to stimulate new construction well at the moment, to the degree that this is true, 96 per cent of negative gearing goes to existing houses not new construction so it's a 96 per cent failure rate."

Investment in existing much lower

However, the sharemarket listed Australian Finance Group has provided data showing that 57 per cent of investor loans go to the purchase of existing homes while 43 per cent go into new housing stock.

Tax depreciation company MCG Quantity Surveyors also said nearly half of its 4000 clients since 2016 use negative gearing for new property, casting doubt on Labor's claim the proportion is 4 to 14 per cent.


Labor's previous version of the policy noted that "revenue foregone" has doubled from $4.2 billion in 2013-14 to $8.6 billion by 2018-19.