ACT making no progress on $115 million debt waiver

Chief Minister Andrew Barr has been publicly lobbying the federal government to waive the ACT's $115 million housing debt, after it agreed in September to set aside Tasmania's own state housing debt.

South Australia had hundreds of millions of dollars in social housing debts to the Commonwealth waived in 2013.

Mr Barr met with federal housing minister Michael Sukkar soon after the Tasmanian deal was struck to push the ACT's case for similar treatment.

But his efforts have so far come to nothing.

Mr Barr told The Canberra Times that the ACT government had written to Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg five times regarding the territory's housing debt - but was yet to receive a response.

The most recent letter was sent on December 12.

Mr Barr planned to again raise the issue when state and territory treasurers meet Mr Frydenberg in April.

"We will continue to advocate for the ACT to get a satisfactory outcome, particularly given the waivers that have been provided to Tasmania and South Australia," he said.

The ACT chief minister has not held back in his public advocacy on the issue, saying in September that it would be a "perversion of Australian democracy" for the Commonwealth to wipe Tasmania's historic housing debt but not do the same for other jurisdictions.

Tasmanian crossbench senator Jacqui Lambie secured the deal for her state in exchange for her support for the Coalition's tax cut package.

"It is entirely untenable for the Commonwealth to do one special deal with Tasmania and leave the rest of the country out. That just won't stand politically," Mr Barr said at the time.

"I'm confident that the Commonwealth will strike the right deal".

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The ACT has two housing loans to Commonwealth which it inherited amid the transition to self-government in 1989.

The scale of the debt means that the territory will have to send almost half the amount - $13.4 million - it receives this year under the national housing and homeless agreement back to the Commonwealth to service the debts.

The territory is seeking the same terms as the Tasmania deal, which would require it to spend all the money saved on public and affordable housing.

Mr Barr has said the government could effectively double the size of its $100 million investment in affordable housing if the debts were wiped.

The government has faced constant criticism in recent years for failing to provide more public and affordable dwellings, as rising house prices push more Canberrans out of the market.

The Canberra Times contacted Mr Sukkar's office for comment, but did not receive a response.