Taking the pulse on immigration

Opinion polls show that most Australians think immigration rates have climbed too high, but more nuanced polling could help inform the government’s range of strategies to address this complex issue.

Turning off the tap

Politicians have boosted Australia’s economic performance through increases in immigration rather than productivity over the last 20 years, but the current housing and infrastructure crisis has prompted a rethink, not least in the much abused foreign student visa system.

Business wants a ‘big Australia’

Rather than train skilled workers themselves, Australian business wants to import workers trained at other nations’ expense to fill gaps in the domestic labour market.

Arvanitakis on American politics: What’s happening on the border?

US President Joe Biden must walk a fine line on immigration policy. If it is seeing as being too harsh, there will be a revolt amongst its own ranks, but if it appears too lax, the Republicans are ready to pounce.

Is it the end of ‘Big Australia’?

COVID-19 has ended the immigration boom. In Australia, the tide of overseas workers and students that has contributed to 25 years of economic growth has stopped dead in its tracks.

The airport border ‘crisis’ is a symptom of management failure

From high staff turn-overs to filling the appeals tribunal with political allies, the Home Affairs department needs to get a grip on Australia’s airport immigration problem.

Immigration isn’t the problem – or the solution

Immigration is neither the problem nor solution in many areas where Australia is off-track, from government debt to environmental action.

Australian border security: hope against hope

While Australia’s ‘Operation Sovereign Borders’ has been a resounding success in dramatically reducing the flow of irregular migrants to Australia by sea, the reopening of the Christmas Island detention centre has renewed the debate around illegal migration.

Australia can learn from Canada’s immigration success story

Australia should follow Canada’s lead by giving the states a bigger seat at the immigration policy table and resisting the temptation to blame immigration for complex growth problems in our overcrowded cities.

Is Australia’s infrastructure overrun by the ‘population ponzi’?

Infrastructure in our major cities is at or over capacity. William Bourke claims that this is a politically engineered crisis Australia needs to address by lowering immigration rates.