Morrison’s immigration figures are the stuff of fancy
The Prime Minister may be painting a picture that Australians want to see, but don’t be fooled: record levels of immigration will continue, writes Peta Credlin.
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The Morrison government wants you to believe that it’s cutting immigration.
And it’s talked a big game on population after Australia hit 25 million much earlier than projected. But buried amid commitments of a 30,000 a year cut in our permanent migrant intake is a change that all but guarantees record levels of immigration will continue.
Almost entirely unremarked in Cities Minister Alan Tudge’s speech last week was his announcement of a new National Population Centre, based in the Treasury, rather than the Immigration department.
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It mightn’t sound like much to someone who hasn’t worked inside the system like me but Treasury are the original ‘Big Australia’ zealots.
Federally, immigration is used to boost the budget — like a giant Ponzi scheme. To the Treasury boffins, more people means a larger economy and more tax revenue for the Feds, and it’s then up to the states to build the roads, schools, hospitals and housing to cope, or not cope, as congestion in our big cities shows.
I accept that, all other things being equal, more people means more tax revenue and a bigger total GDP (although not necessarily higher GDP per person which is why many of us feel we’re going backwards, because we are).
But take this logic to extremes and the easiest fix for the budget would be to just to whack up immigration. And no-one believes that.
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Indeed, one of the reasons why immigration seems only to go up, never down, regardless of domestic economic circumstances, is Treasury’s belief that it’s always good for the economy, even if our cities are full of Indian accountants and Chinese computer programmers driving Ubers.
The myth that Australia’s immigration programme is bringing the world’s most highly skilled people to Australia is a story for another day. Right now, the fact that our immigration numbers are high by OECD standards, and we’ve now handed the power over to Treasury who want it even higher, deserves attention. Particularly when the Morrison Government claims it’s serious about a population plan.