Nationbuild - Immigration

Australia needs greater coherence between its policies on immigration, population and citizenship---ie, policies dictated by the national interest rather than partisan political advantage. There is a strong case for substantially increasing our population. In the first instance, we should focus on what can be done to raise our birth rate. Australia's birth rate is now below its natural replacement rate, and the consequences of an aging population are now starting to become apparent.

Raising our immigration level would complement this. The focus of any increase in migrant numbers, however, should be on those migrants with a high likelihood of finding employment soon after their arrival in Australia. Such an immigration programme would allow us the benefit of being able to increase and better absorb our annual intake of refugees at no net cost to the taxpayer.

Australia has a wonderful national culture of which we can feel extremely proud. It is a culture that we should celebrate and one in which we should encourage active participation by all those who choose to live here. Furthermore, our younger generations need to spend more time learning about our past. Those who choose to become Australian citizens also need to learn more about our country's culture, history and institutions, as this would engender much greater cultural cohesion.

downloadable documents

[15k] Safety in Numbers, by Bob Day