The Greens have suggested turning the Reserve Bank of Australia into what they call a "people's bank" to help people buy their first homes.
The Reserve Bank is Australia's central bank, conducting the nation's monetary policy and setting interest rates.
But the Greens say they want to set up an independent, so-called "people's bank."
Leader Richard Di Natale says the Reserve Bank is at fault for the current housing-affordability crisis and the corruption which led to the banking royal commission.
He suggests the people's bank as a solution, limiting it to owner-occupiers, not investors, and giving them up to 60 per cent of the cost of a house at lower interest rates.
Senator Di Natale has told the National Press Club it would help ordinary people find a way into the housing market.
"It makes their loan more affordable. It means they're not competing with speculators and investors. It means that they get access to an affordable rate of interest. We want a safe, secure, stable banking environment motivated by its interest towards consumers and not making super profits. That's what we've got at the moment." Mr Di Natale says.
The Greens are not alone with a proposal for a nationalised bank.
Both One Nation and the Katter's Australian Party have previously floated similar ideas as the answer to farm and landowner woes.
But the Coalition says it does not agree with the Greens' plan.
Treasurer Scott Morrison says it would make loans more expensive for borrowers using commercial banks.
He says, if people could borrow 60 per cent of their property's value, it would become most attractive to wealthy people who already had the other 40 per cent.
Mr Morrison argues similar interventions have not worked in the past.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has not immediately backed it, calling the plan a "thought bubble."
He says the way to lower housing costs is to tackle negative gearing, where an investor borrows money to acquire an investment property and then gains income from it.
Senator Di Natale has also used his speech to argue for a universal basic income in Australia to counter the increasing casualisation of work and modernise the welfare system.
Universal basic income is a cash handout of an equal amount to all individuals in a country.
Internationally, Tesla head Elon Musk, Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg and United States senator Bernie Sanders have all advocated for a universal basic income.
