Anthony Albanese takes on unions, bosses and Coalition

Anthony Albanese in Sydney on Wednesday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Swift

A new political battlefront is about to be forged over migration that will pit the Labor government against unions, business and the Coalition.

Anthony Albanese is proposing to embark on the most ambitious migration program the nation has seen in decades.

At its core is a claim to redress the policy neglect that has left Australia ill-equipped for the requirements of the future national workforce. This is not a direct criticism of the previous Coalition government. At a fundamental level, it represents a massive strategic failure over decades.

Unless addressed, it risks undermining key features of our future prosperity, in terms of economic activity and defence of the nation, climate change ambition and social cohesion.

Migration policy touches issues across government policy: an ageing popu­lation; geopolitical tensions; and workforce and environmental challenges.

The migration review, initiated by Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil last September and spearheaded by former secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet Martin Parkinson, is unambiguous in its assessment.

O’Neil will on Thursday outline the Albanese government’s response. There is an assumption that unions will be appeased. But not all. Some employers will be equally unimpressed.

At the heart of the Parkinson review is a declaration that not only is the current system broken, it remains a critical policy weakness that undermines the delivery of crucial outcomes for broader ambitions to address Treasury’s three “P’s”: participation, productivity and population.

The central argument is that current migration policy isn’t delivering what it is supposed to – skilled migrants for the skills we need. This is complicated by underlying economic parameters: does the government want to add to economic pressures?

It is also in direct conflict with policy on housing affordability and standard of living.

Unions and employers have had their say about this. Some employers want open slather. Some unions oppose an opening of the floodgates for obvious reasons. Yet an underlying issue remains, which the Albanese government appears to have accepted. The system is no longer fit for purpose and will continue to undermine economic and strategic objectives if allowed to persist.

Unsurprisingly, there was conflict between the report’s three ­authors but the agreed assumption was immediate reform was needed to a system that favoured temporary skilled migration over pathways to settlement.

The report says that there are now 1.9 million temporary migrants who don’t have a pathway to residency compared to half that number a decade ago.

Thursday’s response to the Parkinson report by government will be a key test of Albanese and O’Neil’s commitment to its rhetoric. Or will they buckle to union pressure?