In scenes reminiscent of the combative Mr Abbott's searing scare campaign against the carbon tax, a visibly strained Mr Turnbull unloaded sarcastically, describing Labor's election pitch to voters as "a hard slog", which essentially amounted to the message "vote Labor and be poorer". Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Treasurer Scott Morrison. Credit:Andrew Meares Labor plans to restrict negative gearing to new houses from July 2017, coupled with a halving of the 50 per cent discount on capital gains tax. Mr Turnbull said that policy would "smash" confidence, represent a "kick in the guts" for homeowners, and constitute a "wrecking ball" for an already vulnerable property market. With Liberals struggling to explain an ongoing policy vacuum over tax and growing increasingly skittish over Labor's revival in opinion polls, the signs of strain in Parliament were evident.

Responding to an interjection from Labor's deputy leader Tanya Plibersek, Mr Turnbull said "she wants to crash housing prices". Illustration: Ron Tandberg "By their measure, a wrecking ball swung into an already vulnerable property market, they believe they will knock down property prices and they will make it easier for people to buy homes," he said. And he even warned that ordinary Australians would find that their diminished housing values would reduce their ability to borrow and even to take holidays. "It means, naturally, that they are less likely to be able to take a holiday or to invest," he said of the results of lower values.

"When they think about starting a business and getting a loan secured on their house to start that business, they are worried. "What happens if that house decline continues? What happens if that equity value, the difference between the value of the home and the loan, continues to shrink? This is a cause of legitimate concern for every single constituent." But Mr Turnbull struggled to clarify his own answer to a question in the House of Representatives on Monday in which he said that his government had no thoughts "whatsoever" to increase capital gains tax. Mr Turnbull said he had been referring, at the time, exclusively to Labor's CGT increase for "individuals". The stoush came amid an atmosphere in Canberra that is suddenly charged with pre-election speculation after the government secured an upper house majority for its proposed Senate voting reforms - seen as a prerequisite for a double dissolution election tipped for July 2. Government MPs conceded their leader's message had been "mangled" over tax reform and expressed concerns that the situation would not be resolved for some time.

A senior Cabinet source said the consideration of tax policies was under way, but described as "some way off" the finalisation of a policy. A leaked copy of the government internal talking points distributed to ministers on Tuesday, and reported by Fairfax Media, revealed why Mr Turnbull needed to backtrack on his previous claim that the CGT was not in the government's thinking. Contrary to what he had told the Parliament, the speaking points distributed by Mr Turnbull's own office, explained that CGT changes were in the frame. "The government will not implement anything as rushed, distorting and potentially destructive as Labor's anti-investment CGT plans," the note states. "There will be no change to the 50 per cent CGT discount for individuals."

"The government is still carefully considering some other changes." Pressed on those changes, Mr Turnbull told Parliament that superannuation tax breaks were being examined. The government is on the hunt for savings in tax expenditures after first considering then dumping the option of an increase in the goods and services tax. It has also ruled out negative gearing along the lines proposed by Labor but may yet consider smaller changes at the higher end, to claw back some funds from what have been described as the excesses of wealthy, negatively geared, multiple property owners. In the Coalition's party room, conservative MPs showed little regard for the government's troubles, lining up to complain about the "safe schools" program to help children with gender issues integrate and avoid bullying.

Several MPs called for the $8 million program to be de-funded. In the meeting, South Australian senator Cory Bernardi complained it had been used to "indoctrinate children into a Marxist agenda of cultural relativism". Follow us on Twitter