Australia’s far-right One Nation party is proposing to cut the number of temporary migrants by about 750,000 over three years, aiming to capitalize on discontent over cost-of-living pressures and a housing squeeze.
The plan will target visas issued to international students and their dependents, as well as skilled migrants, according to a statement. It will seek to end “the practice of temporary visa hopping” to extend a stay in Australia as well the “removal of illegal migrants,” One Nation leader Pauline Hanson said Monday.
The announcement comes days before Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to release his center-left government’s updated migration policy, according to the Australian Financial Review. It’s responding to concerns about rapid population growth exacerbating housing pressures, which is bolstering support for Hanson’s party in opinion polls.
“A larger economy on paper means nothing if Australians are poorer per person and cannot afford a home, find a hospital bed or get ahead,” Hanson said in the statement. “A larger economic pie doesn’t mean anything if individual Australians’ slice of it is getting smaller.”
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Under One Nation’s proposal, net overseas migration would turn negative over the three years and the temporary migrant population would return to around 2017 levels, with the international student population wound back to 2015 levels, according to Hanson.
High immigration has been a key driver of Australia’s economic growth in recent years, though per capita gross domestic product has failed to keep pace with headline numbers. Australia is grappling with elevated inflation and a cutback in skilled migrants runs the risk of pushing up wage costs in industries already struggling to secure workers.
The Reserve Bank of Australia edged up its estimate for economic growth in updated forecasts released last month, in part due to stronger population growth. The RBA may have to resume raising interest rates as early as its meeting in two weeks’ time to try to return inflation to the 2-3 percent target.
