Glenn Pereira
4th September 2009, 06:42 AM
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: If we can shift focus a bit, I suppose, to migration policy, you reduced the skilled migration intake this year, obviously in the face of what you thought the economic conditions were at the time.
Things are looking better with the economy. I wonder if people in business have already approached you and said, "Listen, we need to think about raising the skilled migration intake again."
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: I certainly made it clear at the time I thought we would run large migration programs for a number of years, that this was a temporary correction, and when the economy improved there'd still be a shortage of skills in the economy. We are obviously trying to fill those skills needs by training more young Australians for the demands of the economy, but I think we'll still need strong migration over the coming years, particularly because of the ageing of the work force.
So those demands will commence again, and certainly in my own state of Western Australia I've already been having discussions with a range of large developments about their skills needs, things like the Gorgon project.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: So you have already flagged the need to raise that again?
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: They've started talking to me about what the labour needs will be and prospects are of getting the skills from the Australian work force. I think Gorgon is relatively confident they'll be able to fill most of the positions locally. But if we get a succession of large developments occurring at once, there's no doubt that some migration support will be needed in order to meet some of those skills needs.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: I just wonder if your policy, your view is to try to stay ahead of the growth curve of the economy, or do you wait for the economy to grow and wait for people to come to you and say, "Listen, we need these people".
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: Obviously we try to stay in front of the game, and we try to make sure that the migration program is much more responsive to employers' needs, that's one of the things I have been focusing on for the last year. People have to understand that the most immediate way of responding to the needs is with a temporary migration program. A lot of employers want to bring people on only for temporary purposes, for short period of times, and the 457 program meets those needs.
We have seen a dramatic drop off in the number of 457 visa applications reflecting the state of the economy. But if the economy picks up, no doubt the numbers of those applications will pick up again as well.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: On another area of migration policy, I know you were in India recently, and I think you - I believe you made the point to potential students coming to Australia that you want to decouple this link between education and migration, you don't want people to think vocational training in Australia is an automatic path to permanent residency. I just wonder if you make that point and that point really sinks in in places like India, will people still want to come here and will they want to learn vocational training for a year or two in Australia if they think it won't lead to them living in Australia?
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: Well I guess the proof will be in the pudding. I'm very clear that we run a migration program to suit the needs of Australia, it's a program to suit our national interests. Part of that national interest is attracting young highly skilled persons. People who trained here and have had some work experience here make good migrants, so we'll want to continue to attract former students into our permanent migration program. But we want to attract those with the skills that we need, skills that we can't meet locally. So I'm making it very clear to potential students that the migration program will be based on Australia's needs, not on whatever courses they choose to study.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: I wonder if you think vocational training is still as attractive to people from places like India if it's not a step towards coming to live here?
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: One of the things I want to make sure is that they are looking at courses that would advantage themselves in terms of coming to Australia. We have got to ensure that we are sending the clear signals about what skills we need. I think some people have come purely for the migration pathway, that's why some of them haven't been all that particular about the courses they've studied or necessarily worried too much about the quality. That's been a really unfortunate development. I think there is major reform needed. Julia Gillard's embarked upon that. But my job as Immigration Minister is to make it clear that our program is designed to meet the needs of Australia, we welcome graduates from a university from overseas and from our colleges who have the skills that we need.
But we will be deciding on those skills needs and looking to recruit those people, and obviously that would encourage people to study the sorts of skills we are looking for. Some of those will be vocational skills, we were short of welders and other occupations like that a year or two ago. We may well be again, but those decisions have to be based on Australia's national interest, and it should not be run by courses chosen by overseas students and it won't be.
Things are looking better with the economy. I wonder if people in business have already approached you and said, "Listen, we need to think about raising the skilled migration intake again."
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: I certainly made it clear at the time I thought we would run large migration programs for a number of years, that this was a temporary correction, and when the economy improved there'd still be a shortage of skills in the economy. We are obviously trying to fill those skills needs by training more young Australians for the demands of the economy, but I think we'll still need strong migration over the coming years, particularly because of the ageing of the work force.
So those demands will commence again, and certainly in my own state of Western Australia I've already been having discussions with a range of large developments about their skills needs, things like the Gorgon project.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: So you have already flagged the need to raise that again?
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: They've started talking to me about what the labour needs will be and prospects are of getting the skills from the Australian work force. I think Gorgon is relatively confident they'll be able to fill most of the positions locally. But if we get a succession of large developments occurring at once, there's no doubt that some migration support will be needed in order to meet some of those skills needs.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: I just wonder if your policy, your view is to try to stay ahead of the growth curve of the economy, or do you wait for the economy to grow and wait for people to come to you and say, "Listen, we need these people".
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: Obviously we try to stay in front of the game, and we try to make sure that the migration program is much more responsive to employers' needs, that's one of the things I have been focusing on for the last year. People have to understand that the most immediate way of responding to the needs is with a temporary migration program. A lot of employers want to bring people on only for temporary purposes, for short period of times, and the 457 program meets those needs.
We have seen a dramatic drop off in the number of 457 visa applications reflecting the state of the economy. But if the economy picks up, no doubt the numbers of those applications will pick up again as well.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: On another area of migration policy, I know you were in India recently, and I think you - I believe you made the point to potential students coming to Australia that you want to decouple this link between education and migration, you don't want people to think vocational training in Australia is an automatic path to permanent residency. I just wonder if you make that point and that point really sinks in in places like India, will people still want to come here and will they want to learn vocational training for a year or two in Australia if they think it won't lead to them living in Australia?
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: Well I guess the proof will be in the pudding. I'm very clear that we run a migration program to suit the needs of Australia, it's a program to suit our national interests. Part of that national interest is attracting young highly skilled persons. People who trained here and have had some work experience here make good migrants, so we'll want to continue to attract former students into our permanent migration program. But we want to attract those with the skills that we need, skills that we can't meet locally. So I'm making it very clear to potential students that the migration program will be based on Australia's needs, not on whatever courses they choose to study.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: I wonder if you think vocational training is still as attractive to people from places like India if it's not a step towards coming to live here?
SENATOR CHRIS EVANS: One of the things I want to make sure is that they are looking at courses that would advantage themselves in terms of coming to Australia. We have got to ensure that we are sending the clear signals about what skills we need. I think some people have come purely for the migration pathway, that's why some of them haven't been all that particular about the courses they've studied or necessarily worried too much about the quality. That's been a really unfortunate development. I think there is major reform needed. Julia Gillard's embarked upon that. But my job as Immigration Minister is to make it clear that our program is designed to meet the needs of Australia, we welcome graduates from a university from overseas and from our colleges who have the skills that we need.
But we will be deciding on those skills needs and looking to recruit those people, and obviously that would encourage people to study the sorts of skills we are looking for. Some of those will be vocational skills, we were short of welders and other occupations like that a year or two ago. We may well be again, but those decisions have to be based on Australia's national interest, and it should not be run by courses chosen by overseas students and it won't be.