Families across the electorate of Hinkler are feeling the pressure of Labor’s migration surge, with housing, roads, health care and schools struggling to keep up.
Federal Member for Hinkler David Batt MP is backing the Liberals and Nationals’ Australia-First Migration Plan to cut net overseas migration to 100,000 a year for the first two years, before levelling out at around 160,000 in year four.
Since Labor was elected, around 1.5 million additional people have come to Australia, roughly the population of Adelaide. Every year Labor has been in power; migration has been higher than Labor said it would be.
One in ten people living in Australia is now on a temporary visa. This is unsustainable.
Mr Batt said our local region is seeing the consequences.
“I recognise that communities like Hinkler have been built on the hard work of migrants, and history tells us that migration strengthens our economy, fills critical skills gaps and helps build a better Australia and this plan gets the balance right.”
“Under Labor, the numbers have been too high and the standards too low. Our housing, roads, public transport, hospitals and schools can’t keep up,” Mr Batt said.
“Migration is important, but it needs to put Australia first.
We will protect regional migration programs that support agriculture, health, tourism and hospitality. Something I have always strongly supported.”
“It’s important that our agricultural sector isn’t disadvantaged and under this plan it will be strengthened by the introduction of a new Agriculture Visa from 2030.”
The plan will also reduce the number of temporary visa holders by around 650,000 over four years and keep the permanent migration program capped at 185,000 places a year.
“This isn’t just about cutting the numbers. It’s about bringing in the right people, in the right numbers, with a focus on the skills Australia needs,” Mr Batt said.
“That means bringing in higher-skilled migrants, making temporary visas genuinely temporary and ensuring migration does not outpace our capacity to build homes and provide services.”
The plan will prioritise higher-skilled migrants, including skilled partners and employer-sponsored workers, with stronger standards around income, age, English and full-time work. It will also create Skilled Project Visas to help fill workforce shortages on major projects.
It will also end Temporary Graduate Visas, reduce international student migration and tighten temporary visa rules, so they remain genuinely temporary.
Our plan to cut numbers and improve the skills mix will be Budget neutral.
“We’ll back people who want to make Australia home, contribute to our country and share our aspirations and way of life.”
“Under Labor, the numbers have been too high, and the standards have been too low.
“Our plan is about getting migration back under control and making sure it works for communities like ours.
“I want Hinkler to have the homes, roads, public transport, health care and schools it needs, and young people to have a real chance to own a home here one day.
“We need the right people, with the right skills, in numbers Australia can support.”
Additional measures:
The Liberals and Nationals will raise the standards by increasing the share of skilled migrants and directing migration towards areas of genuine need. This includes:
- allowing more highly paid people to access the Specialist Skills stream;
- within the permanent program, prioritising high-quality eligibility criteria such as age, income, full-time work, and English language proficiency, as well as skilled partners;
- revising the temporary skilled priority list;
- establishing a strike force to clear the backlog of skilled construction applications to address workforce shortages;
- doubling the Talent and Innovation allocation to 7,000 places, through a new AUKUS and Five Eyes visa;
- linking each student visa to the enrolling institution;
- replacing the regional permanent program with Ministerial Directions prioritising employer-sponsored applications in regional Australia;
- revising the regional definitions for the Working Holiday Maker (WHM) program’s extension requirements; and
- introducing a new Agriculture Visa from 2030.
Many of the major changes can be implemented quickly using existing ministerial powers, including changes to Temporary Graduate Visas, student secondary applicants, offshore temporary visa applications and the new Skilled Project Visa.
Our Plan for Less Migration and More Homes