Pause migration ‘until we build more homes’: Institute of Public Affairs survey

About 60 per cent of Australians back a pause in the intake of new migrants until more infrastructure such as roads, hospitals and ­houses are built, a survey reveals.

Figures from an Institute of Public Affairs survey show a majority of Australians believe more investment in infrastructure is needed before significantly more migrants enter the country

About 60 per cent of Australians believe there should be a pause in the intake of new migrants until more infrastructure such as roads, hospitals and ­houses are built, a new survey reveals.

It comes as updated figures last week revealed the net number of people expected to enter Australia over the next two years will reach more than 700,000.

The new net migration figures – which include returning Australian citizens and people on the uncapped international student visa – are significantly higher than previous predictions, which had arrivals for this financial year at 235,000.

Figures from an Institute of Public Affairs survey show a majority of Australians believe more investment in infrastructure is needed before significantly more migrants enter the country, with the right-leaning think tank estimating the country was headed for a housing shortage of more than 180,000 homes.

Based on previous net migration estimates of 650,000 ­people entering Australia in the next two years, 64 per cent of respondents to an IPA survey believed this was too many and 60 per cent believed the country should “temporarily pause its intake of new immigrants until more economic and social infrastructure, such as schools, roads, hospitals, and houses, are built”.

 

Respondents aged 54 to 66 were most likely to support a temporary pause, with 66 per cent agreeing it was necessary, compared to those aged 18 to 24, of whom only 47 per cent believed the same.

IPA deputy executive director Daniel Wild said “unsustainably increasing migration” was not in the interest of most Australians.

“Any proper, comprehensive review of migration should have considered the impact tax and red-tape barriers have on stopping Australian pensioners, veterans and students from re-entering the workforce, and the contribution they can make to ­alleviating the worker shortage,” he said.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there were almost 440,000 job vacancies in February, which the IPA argued could be filled by pensioners who would work if red tape, including the deduction of the pension for every dollar earned above $226 a week, were removed.

Mr Wild also raised alarm at increased migration exacerbating the housing shortage, which the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation in April estimated would top 100,000 homes in the next five years without taking into account updated migration projections.

“While the federal government has committed to a dramatic expansion to the migrant intake, Australians are calling for their political leaders to ensure there is adequate social and economic infrastructure, as well as local work rules in place,” Mr Wild said.

It follows the Coalition urging Labor to explain how it would provide infrastructure for the 715,000 people due to arrive from overseas in the next two years.

The migration review unveiled by Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil last week included a number of recommendations to smooth the pathway to permanency for temporary migrants and international students, which she stressed would lead to a more efficient migration system.