The role of immigration in Australia's population future

Australia's broad population directions are relatively clear. Over the next 50 years, our population growth rate will decline and our overall population may stabilise at around 23 million, perhaps a little more. I expect that most Australians would not be alarmed by this prospect.

I know that some have argued that we should take action to achieve a very much smaller population. Others have argued for a very much larger population.

On the evidence I have seen to date, the environmental arguments for a very much smaller population do not stack up against the social and economic costs involved in achieving a smaller population.

A somewhat better case can be made for a slightly larger population but this is highly dependent on how we set about achieving this. It would be good if we can achieve this by minimising further declines in our fertility rate by adopting practices that help all Australians to better manage the balance between work and family responsibilities.

The other way to achieve this is through a highly targeted and well-planned immigration program.

A key element of such a program must be skilled migration, intelligently linked to the long-term needs of Australia.

The Government has instituted a number of initiatives to deliver such a program.

We have increased the proportion of skilled migrants in the Migration Program, from around 29 per cent in 1995-96 to 50 per cent in 1999-00.

Australia is now attracting better-educated, younger, more job-ready migrants with the language skills to operate successfully in the Australian workplace. There is mounting evidence of the economic, budgetary and employment benefits of this reform. There is also mounting evidence that highly skilled migrants can help to minimise income inequality whilst unskilled migrants increase inequality. Both the business community and the Labor Opposition have applauded this new emphasis.

However, there is not a bottomless pit of these people waiting for the call to come to Australia. We are in competition for them with many other nations. This competition is intensifying with new countries entering the race for these people. If we are to win this competition, we need partnerships between the Commonwealth, Industry and State governments.

To demonstrate the Government's commitment to work towards an increase in skilled migration, I announced an 8,000 place contingency reserve which can be used if Industry and relevant State Governments can recruit the skilled migrants they say they need. Steps have also been taken to streamline the mechanisms that Industry and the States can use.

Clearly the key to these initiatives is partnership. Businesses that cannot meet their labour force needs from within Australia and profess a desire for more skilled migrants need to actively seek them out and find a place for them within their industry and within their organisations.

The fact is, highly skilled people are extremely valuable and highly mobile - they will go to whatever job and whatever country offers them the best overall returns on their skills. As such we have to be more innovative and apply new techniques to remain competitive in the race for this highly attractive labour.

The scale of this challenge means that we can’t continue to be blinkered by policy that encompasses only permanent resettlement. If we were, we would be doing this nation a great disservice. It is for this reason that we are so firmly embracing the enormous opportunities provided by long-term skilled temporary migration.

In the global economy of which Australia is a part, these individuals make a major contribution to Australia’s international competitiveness. They bring with them new ideas, skills, technology, understanding and contacts.

To take advantage of these opportunities this Government has taken advice from my Business Advisory Panel and has developed a range of streamlined long-term temporary migration entry arrangements. These are rated amongst the most effective arrangements in the world for attracting what is a highly mobile and discriminating workforce.

And we are succeeding. The number of these skilled temporary entrants has been rising steadily over recent years. 33,000 long-term skilled temporary resident business visas were granted in 1998-99 – almost the same amount as the total number of skilled permanent migration visas issued for the same period. Long-term temporary movements now make-up around 50 per cent of net overseas migration, the key measure of the contribution of immigration to population growth.

The 33,000 highly skilled temporary entrants that came to Australia in 1998-99, sponsored by companies in Australia, represent six times the number sponsored by business for permanent entry (5,600).

Long-term temporary migration will become the touchstone for migration’s international future. As Australia does not impose numeric controls on these temporary entry categories, their volume is likely to continue to rise.

As I said to the Business Council of Australia in November 2000, the days when big programs were underpinned with very little thought, and it was an article of faith that sheer numbers of migrants were good for this nation, are gone. We now live in a far more sophisticated world and we need to match new realities with new thinking and new partnerships. In this world, academic debate about a formal Population Policy misses the point and seems quaintly old-fashioned.

Rather than a return to the past, I believe most Australians want an economically and socially vibrant Australia that is sustainable into the future. Immigration can play a vital role in achieving that future.