The politics and policy mix the Coalition can’t resolve

Malcolm Turnbull’s opposition to Peter Dutton’s plan to reduce immigration by about 20,000 a year highlights the tension in the Coalition over the politics and policies of border protection.

Dumping the proposal also shows a lack of political foresight. Whatever the principles of a cut — and there are valid reasons for not reducing our intake from 190,000 a year or for making a modest cut — the politics is clear. There is public concern about the level of immigration, heard in capital-city suburbs for more than a decade as a lack of public transport, decent roads and affordable housing fuel the sense Australia is “too crowded”.

There are strong economic and moral arguments for Australia to maintain high levels of immigration, especially its refugee intake, but there are equally strong fears about urban crowding, threats to jobs, wage cuts and poorly trained workers. Justified or not, the fears are real.

The government must make sensible economic decisions, but it is also obliged to reassure the public there is no real threat, or that any threats are being managed. The Howard government could run high levels of immigration because Australians were reassured the borders were protected and the process was controlled and fair.

With record job growth — partly fuelled by immigration — and record refugee intakes, the Coalition should be able to argue for continued refugee intakes as well as sensible cuts to the intake.

Tony Abbott and Pauline Hanson have made cutting immigration a real political issue. Abbott’s call to halve the intake goes too far, but the public response he gets is positive.

Had Dutton won support for a 20,000 reduction last year, it would have cut the lifeline to One Nation, reassured people things were under control and not given the former PM yet another policy difference with Turnbull.

Dutton’s hard line on African crime gangs, foreign outlaw bikies and criminals has been good for the government.

At the same he oversaw the special intake of Syrian refugees. That’s a Howard government standard mix of policy and politics.