Cuts to immigration rejected by Treasurer Scott Morrison
Cuts to immigration rejected by Treasurer Scott Morrison So why the cuts now? Australai can only grow if Migration number are increased
Mr Scott Morrison, the Treasurer for Australia, has downplayed the calls made by One Nation as well as conservatives, including former Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s, regarding the intake in immigration to be decreased.
According to Mr Morrison, the net immigration has come down since the last ‘big Australia’ debate back in 2010, and the present levels were important in order to keep the economy going provided that there is a decline in the population of the working age.
Mr Morrison also stated that the lead-up to the elections back in 2010, when he was still the shadow immigration minister, the growth in population was at 1.8 per cent and the net overseas migration had reached to 300,000.
”Now, today, the net overseas migration is running at about 170,000 to 180,000,” said stated Mr Morrison during an interview with Sky News. ”Population growth is running at about 1.4, so that is a dramatically different situation from the last big Australia debate that we had.”
”Population growth is currently running for the non-working population at around twice the rate of the working population, so it is over 2 per cent for the non-working population and around one per cent for the working age populatio,” he continued on to say. ”So those who are advocates for cutting back on immigration, what that will simply do is make that gap even wider, and it means there will be fewer people in the working age paying for pensions, paying for services, paying for all the things that are very necessary.”
”I am no great big Australia advocate, but I am a pretty common sense politician and decision-maker when it comes to these sorts of issues.”
He also stated that Australians were very concerned regarding governments making sure that the different immigration programs were running smoothly, and that there is security on our borders.
”The Australian public have every reason to believe in our integrity and strength when it comes to making sure that we bring people who come to make a contribution and not take 1, and so long as your immigration program is focused on bringing people to the country who add value, like has been our experience for one hundred years, then it is a net contributor to our economy,” he went on further.
When Mr Morrison was asked about the former prime minister’s calls for the reduction of numbers in net migration, he said that it was up to Mr Abbott to make his case. ”I am not making his case, so you will have to ask him about his reasons for why he thinks that would be good for the economy,” he explained.
He also said that the immigration debate often becomes a proxy for a discussion regarding infrastructure, which is actually going to be a very critical budget focus.
”It was in our last budget and it was in the budgets under Treasurer Hockey as well,” Mr Morrison stated. ”We are heavily focused on a 50 billion dollar rolling national infrastructure program which is focused on productivity, not just kicking out the money to the door in some sort of fob off to the states.”
”When we invest, we invest in projects that life productivity,” he added.
Ms Pauline Hanson, the leader of One Nation, maintained her calls for the reduction of net immigration, and stood by her maiden speech comments back in 1996 that Australia was ”in danger of being swamped by Asians.”
According to Senator Hanson, the Australian population back then was made up of 4.5 per cent Asians and now already make up about 10 per cent of that.
”When I made that statement and John Howard made a comment in 1998 about the number of Asians coming to Australia, also did Malcolm Fraser and also Charlie Perkins made a comment about it,” the Senator said during an interview with ABC’s Insiders.
”It was on the lips of many people,” she said. ”I actually happened to come out and say it.”
”So what happened was that we had a family reunion program from Bob Hawke, from the students that were here in the country, when Tiananmen Square happened, he opened the floodgates, we had 300,000 that came in, a family reunion program.”
She also went on to say that if Mr John Howard had not done what he did when he pulled back on immigration, Australia would have had an ‘imbalance’, as they pulled back to 150,000 from the original numbers which were 175,000.
”If you are going to have different races that come into Australia, they have got to actually assimilate and blend into our society and become Australians,” she explained. ”That’s all people ask.”
Australians, according to Senator Hanson, did not want multiculturalism, but muti-racial melting pots.
”We must be Australians, the one culture, the one law,” said Senator Hanson. ”There are ghettos in this country that do not assimilate.”
She also said that we needed ot make sure people assimilate, and that they learn how to speak English and respect the Australian laws.
She also explained that even if majority of the people in Australia are Christians, there also are other religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism, and that there is no problem with these religions.
Islam on the other hand, to Senator Hanson’s view, is a ”political ideology who want to impose their sharia law and impose their way of life and their thoughts, processes, on the rest of our society.”
This was editorialised by Mr Barrie Cassidy, the host of Insiders, ”I think they all say they are prepared to obey Australian law and operate under that basis.” He then asked Senator Hanson about her once difficult relationship with former Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
Senator Hanson replied that she was like an ‘old elephant’ and did not easily forget the past. However, she is prepared to work and cooperate with anyone, this includes Mr Abbott, Mr Malcolm Turnbull, or even Mr Bill Shorten, just so her constituents can get the best results.
Senator Hanson said that she’d rather have Malcolm Turnbull when asked who she prefers to lead Australia: Peter Dutton, Scott Morrison, Julie Bishop or Anthony Albanese.
”I have a good rapport with the Prime Minister,” explained the Senator. ”He does listen to my points of view.”
”I do not always get everything I’d like to see happen but he is respectful to me and so are the other Ministers that sit down and talk to me,” she said. ”I did not have that the last time around in the parliament.”
More like thisRelated
Hospitality Jobs in Australia
Cinemas in Darwin NT: Guide to the Best Movie Spots
New Sponsorship Compliance: Measures From 1 July 2024
Discover the Best Snorkelling Spots Near Adelaide
Top 5 Snorkelling Spots Near Perth