Luke Foley’s concern for ‘middle ring’ suburbs not prepared for refugee influx
LABOR leader Luke Foley has put the issue of “white flight” in Western Sydney on the political agenda, warning “many Anglo families” are being forced to move out of struggling suburbs facing “slow decline”. We can reveal the top 10 Sydney suburbs where Australian-born residents have decreased.
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LABOR leader Luke Foley has put the issue of “white flight” in Western Sydney on the political agenda, warning “many Anglo families” are being forced to move out of struggling suburbs facing “slow decline”.
Mr Foley pointed to suburbs such as Fairfield, where governments had pushed huge intakes of refugees into regions without matching jobs and education resources.
MORE : What does ‘white flight’ mean?
Mr Foley, who wants to be the state’s next premier, said there were growth stories worth celebrating in the West but there was also no doubt some areas were now struggling under the strain of a wave of new refugees, “sub-regions that must not be forgotten”.
“I’m particularly concerned about suburbs around Fairfield because they’re carrying just a huge burden when it comes to the refugee intake from Syria and Iraq,” he said.
“Something like three-quarters of the Syrian and Iraqi refugees are settling around Fairfield. It’s all right to come up with a grand gesture of we’ll take 10,000 Syrian or Iraqi refugees but where’s the practical assistance?”
The Opposition Leader said there was a “middle ring” of suburbs in the west that needed more practical support in terms of jobs and education to match their booming migrant population. He pointed to Fairfield, Sefton, Yennora and Guildford.
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“I’m saying, what about that middle ring of suburbs that have experienced, if anything, just a slow decline. In terms of employment, in terms of white flight — where many Anglo families have moved out?” Mr Foley said.
“I’m not prepared to see the people of those suburbs denied opportunities that are taken for granted elsewhere.
“I celebrate the growth of the northwest and southwest and the opportunities the airport will bring … but I’m saying let’s not forget about the struggling ring of suburbs as well.”
A landmark report published this week in The Daily Telegraph revealed how Fairfield underperformed on all metrics for liveability.
On a possible score of 10, the suburb averaged just 2.6 as a place to live, work and play.
Data also showed the areas with the highest unemployment were clustered together in Fairfield, Fairfield East, Fairfield West and Guildford.
Fairfield’s unemployment rate was an alarmingly high 9 per cent last December.
“Government should be sitting down with leaders in Fairfield and talking about what they need,” Mr Foley said.
The Labor leader who, as a junior MP, was among the first to truly push for an airport in Western Sydney, said he believed in jobs and education for the region.
He said he would push to give assistance to schools in areas like Fairfield for specialist teaching support focused on intensive English and boost TAFE links.
“We need to rebuild TAFE so there are great opportunities for young people there to do trades training, learn a skill and get a good career path happening and we have to be talking about expanding employment opportunity.”
Mr Foley said he would also champion the Royal Agricultural Society’s expansion at Sydney Olympic Park.
“Let’s have a convention and events hub,” he said.
“The Royal Agricultural Society wants to expand and that’s something that would translate to jobs around that middle ring of suburbs.”