The Minister of Home Affairs Clare O’Neil speaks about Australia’s broken immigration system. She believes that it needs to be changed and revamped. Changes must be made or the Australian economy will suffer a rapid decline. According to Clare O’Neil, Australia will fall behind its competitors on a global level if the system will remain the same.
Clare has made it clear that it will be the top priority of Australian Government to reform its broken immigration system. According to O’Neil, the government’s annual boost in permanent migration this month was just the beginning of a more comprehensive immigration reform.
Let’s find out more about what Clare O’Neil has to say about reforming the Australian immigration system!
Statements by Clare O’Neil on Broken Immigration System of Australia!
In an interview with The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, O’Neil said:
All the rules that we use to decide who comes in and who doesn’t aren’t working.
The way we define skills shortages is totally broken. I think it is universally recognised that this is not serving the country’s needs.
A comprehensive analysis of Australia’s migration system will be conducted by 3 renowned Australians. It will be presented to the government by the end of February.
O’Neil said immigration must be restructured to make sure that Australia has enough professionals and skilled employees in critical areas. These critical areas/fields include cybersecurity, defence manufacturing and renewable energy.
She stated that:
I’m trying to shift the conversation to an understanding that we’re now in a global war for talent.
All the developed countries around the world are fighting for the same skills and capabilities and right now, Australia is not going to be a destination of choice because it takes too long, it’s too expensive. And even if you make it here, you probably can’t stay. We need to rethink that.
O’Neil referred to recent statements by Nobel-prize winning astrophysicist Brian Schmidt who’s now a Vice-chancellor of the Australian National University. Clare said that Brian got his visa within 4 days only when he and his wife arrived in Australia in 1994.
Meanwhile, Schmidt said that an Indian potential employee received his visa after 21 months after he was offered a 3-year job position. O’Neil said the annual immigration intake and population size of Australia would not be the main focus.
In her words:
This is not about how many migrants we bring to the country. It doesn’t have to mean any increase in the number of migrants.
It’s about who we bring here and what we’re doing it for.
Following the jobs summit, Anthony Albanese announced that he wanted to shift the focus of Australia’s immigration policy to permanent immigration. He emphasized that the focus should not be on short-term visas.
According to Anthony Albanese:
It makes no sense for example to bring in a nurse for two years, three years, and then see them leave, then try to find another nurse to take that place.
O’Neil believes the country’s immigration laws should be updated instead of conducting divisive activity that could divide unions and businesses.
Before heading to Washington for a meeting of global home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil said:
I actually think this is bleedingly obvious and something of a no-brainer.
She continued saying:
We’ve got some really big challenges that we’re confronting and we’ve got this great opportunity to welcome the best and the brightest from around the world to help us confront them.
While acknowledging the importance of IT upgrades. O’Neil believes Australians will be shocked at how much paperwork and human involvement is required at current visa processing times.
Clare O’Neil said:
This helps explain the backlog of over 950,000 visa applications Labor inherited when it took office in May.
In Clare’s point of view:
Immigration had “without a doubt been the forgotten child” of the Home Affairs Department under the previous Coalition government, accusing her predecessors of not being interested in “immigration as a nation building exercise.
Watch this Video!
Future of Australian Immigration 2021-2022 | Bright Scope of Skill Migrants
Peter Dutton on Broken Immigration System!
Following the summit, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said that the government’s move to increase permanent migrant intake was “too little, too late”. He recommended that the number of permanent migration intake should be higher.
He stated:
We do need an increase in the migration numbers, but we’ll see what the government actually delivers because this can be many, many months, if not a couple of years in the pipeline.
During the Coalition government’s tenure under Scott Morrison, Australia’s migration cap was reduced from 190,000 to 160,000.
In an interview with Sky News on Sunday, Neil suggested the government was likely to end a controversial program, also called the Significant Investor Visa. A skilled immigrant can fast track their visa application if they invest $5 million in the country with a Significant Investor Visa.
She stated:
Most Australians would be pretty offended by the idea we’ve got a visa category here where effectively you can buy your way into the country.
She added:
It’s a visa program that I think isn’t adding value to the country and it’s something that we will be looking at.
Final Words – Broken Immigration System!
Clare O’Neil has expressed her opinions on the broken immigration system of Australia. She shared her thoughts on how to restructure the immigration policies in Australia. We’ve penned down the important quotations by Home Affairs Minister, Clare O’Neil.
To find out more about the Australian immigration and new rules, you can consult with registered migration agents in Australia!
Related Articles!
- Increased Skilled Migration Cap to 195,000 – Feedback from Visa Holders!
- 5 Key Benefits of Consulting an Immigration Agent to Move to Australia
- Future Immigration Policy of Australia – Grattan Institute
I’m Nasir Nawaz. I’m a registered migration consultant in Australia. I am based in Sydney. I’ve studied Master of Laws at the University of New South Wales. I’m providing immigration services for several years.
Consult with me for legal advice on Australian visas to permanently live, study, and work in Australia.
-
Nasir Nawazhttps://themigration.com.au/staging/author/ehsanthemigration-com-au/
-
Nasir Nawazhttps://themigration.com.au/staging/author/ehsanthemigration-com-au/
-
Nasir Nawazhttps://themigration.com.au/staging/author/ehsanthemigration-com-au/
-
Nasir Nawazhttps://themigration.com.au/staging/author/ehsanthemigration-com-au/
