PM ‘expects’ migrant cap to be cut by 30,000

Scott Morrison says he “expects’’ the cap on Australia’s migration intake to be slashed by 30,000.

Scott Morrison at the 2018 Bradfield Oration in Sydney last night. Picture: Christian Gilles

Scott Morrison says he “expects” the cap on Australia’s migration intake to be slashed by 30,000, promising an improvement in how the country manages population in its “clogged” cities.

The Prime Minister said his government would look to reduce the yearly cap of 190,000 as recent immigration figures were about 30,000 below that limit, and emphasised that temporary as well as permanent visas would need to be considered as part of changes.

“We’re running 30,000 below where it has been … It wouldn’t surprise me if any process that we went through would arrive in that sort of territory,” he said. “I believe that this is likely to end up in revising down the permanent ­migration cap in Australia. That would be my expectation.”

Speaking at the 2018 Bradfield Oration in Sydney last night, Mr Morrison also said Sydney and Melbourne were victims “of our own success”, and called for a ­“bottom-up” approach as part of a “new discussion with state and territories and local governments about how we manage and plan for our changing population”.

“Far too often, planners have treated population as one amorphous blob, but that doesn’t work for Australia. We’re too big and diverse,” he said.

“I’m very concerned about the rate of population growth … not the existence of population growth, but the pace of population growth. The roads are clogged, the buses and the trains are full, the schools are taking no more enrolments … We can hear that.

“Talking about average population growth is like talking about average rainfall. It fails to recognise the different experiences and outlooks of cities or regions.

“In Sydney, migrants accounted for around 70 per cent of population growth last year. This has created its own pressure points — and pressure points in population always manifest themselves in housing and infrastructure.”

He also stressed the need to “recognise the economic benefit of temporary migration”.

But this morning, Cities Minister Alan Tudge said cutting population growth will have an effect on the state of the federal budget.

Mr Tudge, labelled the “minister for congestion busting” by the Prime Minister, said migration cuts could affect the government’s federal budget figures but that it had to be balanced with population pressures in major cities like infrastructure.

“Of course, the migration number has an impact on the budget figures,” he told ABC radio.

“Migration brings growth, it brings skills, it brings younger people to cater for the older generation. So it’s very important we maintain a strong migration intake.”

“But that’s got to be balanced out with the population pressures, which particularly Sydney and Melbourne are feeling.”

When former prime minister Tony Abbott called for a significant slow down of population growth of 110,000, Mr Morrison, the then-treasurer, said it would cost the budget up to $5 billion over the next four years.

Mr Tudge said this morning that a cut of 30,000 migrants would not have the same massive budget impact.

The minister also reiterated the government’s commitment to a “bottom-up” approach to population with states and territories directing the Commonwealth on how many migrants they need.

Population will be the centrepiece of next month’s COAG meeting between Mr Morrison and the premiers. Mr Tudge said he planned to release a full population policy early next year.