I asked questions about the staggering numbers of new visa holders flooding into Australia — 5.8 million tourists visas issued in the last 12 months and 1.1 million work, student and permanent visas.
The Minister representing the Minister for Home Affairs used up his allotted response time in a performance that involved pretending he didn’t really understand my question. He worked hard to reassign blame for the current situation, ignoring that it’s happening under his government’s watch.
He promoted Labor’s Housing Fund, which One Nation opposed. The scheme is a con that will build a few thousand homes in total and allows the Government to pretend the housing needs of the millions of people they are letting in can be met.
Labor is flooding the country with millions of new arrivals, and pretends housing is taken care of. It is not. The only way to fix the housing crisis is to turn the visa tap off until the housing stock catches up.
Transcripts
Senator ROBERTS: My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Home Affairs, Senator Watt. Australia has 300,000 hotel rooms and 140,000 Airbnbs. These are, of course, turned over many times. There are 26 million Australians as well using these rooms for their own holidays. Into this small stock of rooms the Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that in financial year 2022-23 there were 5.86 million arrivals staying, on average, 14 days. Minister, has this almost 500 per cent increase in tourists under your government motivated landlords to move their property from long-term rental accommodation for everyday Australians to short-stay accommodation for hotel overflow?
Senator Watt (Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and Minister for Emergency Management): Thank you, Senator Roberts. There’s a lot in that. It seems to be as much about tourism and housing as it is about migration, but I will attempt to answer the question. The figures that you quoted there—I can’t verify whether they are accurate or not. I presume the five million number that you said would include a substantial number of tourists. But, if your question relates to migration figures, the government has obviously already announced a number of measures to fix what is a hopelessly broken migration system that we inherited not just from the opposition but from the minister responsible for it: one Mr Peter Dutton. Mr Dutton was the Minister for Home Affairs for the bulk of the former government and oversaw the migration system that we’ve inherited, which allowed for rampant exploitation and allowed for abuse of the migration system in some cases by education providers that we see now, and we are taking steps to try to address that.
It’s a shame that the opposition, who have got a lot to say now, didn’t do a single thing about these issues when they were in government. We’ve ended the pandemic event visa, we’ve ended unlimited working hours for international students and work exemptions for working visa holders. We’re increased the temporary skilled migration income threshold, which is the first increase in a decade. These are some of the steps that our government has taken to fix the hopelessly broken migration system that was presided over by Mr Dutton as the home affairs minister. I don’t know, Senator Roberts, whether that directly addresses your question because, as I say, there was a lot in it. But we’re taking steps to try to fix the migration system once and for all.
First Supplementary Question
The President: Senator Roberts, first supplementary?
Senator ROBERTS: According to departmental data in the 2022-23 financial year the department issued a record 687,000 student visas. Not many have departed because, due to COVID, most have only been here less than a year. Minister, Australia has 100,000 dedicated student accommodation beds. Where are the other 500,000 or so students staying?
Senator Watt: Thank you, Senator Roberts. I don’t think you’d expect that I’d be able to give you a precise address for every single international student who is living in Australia at the moment. But, as I say, if those opposite had complaints about the number of international students who are in Australia at the moment, perhaps they could have done something about the system when they were in government for 10 years. Perhaps they could have done that.
Opposition senators interjecting—
Senator Watt: So now you’re not supporting him. Senator Canavan is supporting Senator Roberts, but the Liberals aren’t in agreement. Where are the coalition on these issues? Nationals are saying one thing, Liberals are saying another, and here is one of them.
The President: Minister Watt, please resume your seat. Senator Hughes, on a point of order?
Senator Hughes: Perhaps you could encourage Minister Watt to direct his answers through you rather than people who didn’t ask the question.
The President: I will certainly do that, Senator Hughes, and I will also direct, particularly those on my left, to stop interjecting with their comments. It is disrespectful. Minister Watt, please make your remarks through the chair.
Senator Watt: President, it is interesting to see that there seems to be a split between the Liberal and the National parties on this issue. Senator Canavan and the other Nationals are backing in One Nation, and the Liberals are wanting to run a mile. But, of course, apart from fixing the migration system, this government is doing more than the former government ever did when it came to the provision of housing, and, just to remind you of one measure, Housing Australia— (Time expired)
Second Supplementary Question
The President: Senator Roberts, second supplementary?
Senator ROBERTS: In the last financial year the department issued a record 441,000 business visas plus a record 195,000 permanent migrant visas plus another 10,000 humanitarian visas plus another 47,000 temporary work visas. After departures, the net increase here was another 500,000. Minister, where are these 500,000 people going to stay, and is this insane level of intake the reason that Australians can no longer find an affordable home?
Senator Watt: In your previous question, Senator Roberts, you did acknowledge that one of the reasons that we have seen a spike in migration is that there has been a return to Australia of international students and workers—and tourists for that matter—since COVID, so it’s no surprise that we have seen an increase in migration numbers, given there were at least a couple of years when people basically couldn’t come to Australia, and there was always going to be a degree of catch-up in there. You ask what we are doing about housing, and again what I say is that this government has done more certainly than the last coalition government and probably more than any other Australian government to fix the issues that we do have around housing—and they are very real. We didn’t see investment from the former coalition government in public housing for nearly 10 years, and we are fixing that. We’re delivering the Housing Australia Future Fund, which, Senator Roberts, I remember you voted against last time. You cared so much about housing that you voted against a fund that was going to build more homes! We’re also providing more money for social housing and rental assistance. (Time expired)
Agreed! Thank you for your great work, Senator Roberts
Firstly, I’m a ALP member. and up until recently an ALP voter. But this is part of a pattern on this issue from Labor … dodging the topic. Deflecting with platitudes. Referencing tokenism policies. I think people are getting fed up with this from the ALP … they face an election in 18 months or so. I think a lot of regular ALP people know when they’re being taken for granted, and will lodge a protest vote next time around.
I’ve not been a supporter of One Nation in the past, but they have latched onto popular sentiment here, and I hope they’ll keep focus on this issue heading towards the next election. I’m actually not in support of zero intake, but with housing affordability as it is, if I had a choice between zero and 500,000++, I’d have to choose zero.
And all the new Australians and temporary students, are all in the same boat as those Australian’s who have been here longer … they’re competing for housing along with everyone else, and soon will be competing against next year’s intake numbers. This housing crisis is not caused by the new arrivals themselves, it’s caused by bad government decision making, and government policy making geared towards short-term agendas.
When the elected in power are so vested in Comunissm? bring in migrants needs more housing, Oh need more tradies to build houses OBVIOUSLY THE SCHOOL KIDS ‘PALESTINE PROTEST’ ACCOMPANIED BY ADULTS THE MAJORITY OBVIOUSLY ON THE SYSTEM CHAPPERONING TO USE THE SCHOOLS AS SHIELDS . When does importing this benefit, regardless of what we have no power over either Israel Hamas Palestine the point not hammered calls of/for genocide are totally a one way street against Israelites not as broadcasted reporting suggests legal action needed?
The housing crisis affects everyone!! “Queue jumpers” doesn’t just apply to immigrants,but if people aren’t put in the right order on the waiting list or anything then it gets worse over time & homeless an impossible predicament instead of a manageable situation
I wonder if the Senator’s keep in mind that the public are watching?
The behaviour of Senator’s Watt and Wong is deplorable.
How do they expect to win the trust and respect of their constituents when they behave like bullies in the school yard.
No wonder our country is in dire need of real government.
Dodging questions is all Senator Watt seems capable of.
Infrastructure elsewhere is not going to help the people of Stanthorp.
It is not rocket science- we have a housing shortage! Why allow such high numbers of immigrants?
Every day Australian’s are suffering. Perhaps the Senator has a spare bedroom