Interview with Karl Stefanovic, The Today Show, Channel Nine
KARL STEFANOVIC, HOST: Well, the Coalition will begin working on tougher screening measures for migrants as new polling reveals Australians are now more worried about immigration than climate change. The Employment Minister Amanda Rishworth and publisher and podcast host Sarrah Le Marquand join me now to discuss. Morning ladies, nice to see you. So Amanda, we have a problem with immigration. Australians believe you are eroding their standard of living, but don't believe you are decreasing immigration, and a lot of people are saying the same thing.
AMANDA RISHWORTH, MINISTER FOR EMPLOYMENT AND WORKPLACE RELATIONS: Karl, what we need to do is manage our migration system in an orderly way, and that's exactly what we've been doing. In the last year, we've had a net overseas migration go down by 40 per cent. Of course, that comes off the peaks of COVID. But I would say the Coalition can't be taken seriously. I mean, they are the group that blocked our cap on international students in the parliament. But we're getting on with the job. If you're refused a visa, then you do leave the country. But our job is to have an orderly system, not use migration as some sort of internal Liberal Party division which is exactly what's happening on their side of politics.
KARL STEFANOVIC: I don’t think it’s that to be fair, I mean, people aren't idiots. I mean, they know that there are more coming in. They know that rents are going up. They know that house prices are going up, and it's all adding to their burden. It needs to be dramatically, I think, changed in a way that reflects Australians and Australian values, doesn't it?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Well, firstly, I would say that when it comes to migration, like I said, the net migration has reduced by 40 per cent in a year. We are also getting the balance right of making sure we have the right skills mix, that we have skilled migration to help contribute to build those homes. But when it comes to housing, I mean, quite frankly, this has been because decades of governments haven't been paying attention to this. I'm really pleased that approvals for homes are up, completions are up, as well as commencements. So this stuff does take some time, but we're absolutely focused on it.
KARL STEFANOVIC: I'll circle back to you on that in a sec, but I think, Sarrah, Aussies are off immigration at the moment. It's hard to argue against from a pure numbers point of view.
SARRAH LE MARQUAND: Well- and you certainly can't argue against what people are feeling, and you can't tell people what they feel. And when we hear this from Australians, I think it also cuts to the heart that Australians rightfully feel, as you alluded to there, Karl, they can't pay their mortgages. Rent is out of control across the country, whether you're living in an urban city or whether you're living in a more regional area. People are struggling to get to work. The roads are crowded. Everyone feels like the demand is just not mapping up with supply. So there's clearly something going on. I think with Amanda saying there that net migration has reduced by 40 per cent in the last year, that's certainly not how it feels for Australians. So I would hate to see us getting into some really regressive, xenophobic conversation around how we tackle migration, because Australians are better than that. But I understand the concerns at the heart of it.
KARL STEFANOVIC: It’s a pure numbers game. Also, you mentioned housing, Amanda. So we learned this morning that, what, you're 20 per cent behind targets?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Well, look, it is an ambitious target that we've set. I mean, previous Commonwealth Governments had checked out completely. We're not doing that. We've decided to tackle this. We've put $43 billion on the table. We're also looking at, of course, how we get our approvals up, which are up in the last year, commencements up, of course. But it does take some time, but we're absolutely committed to focusing on it.
KARL STEFANOVIC: Let me get you quickly on Meta – 16-year-olds, are they going to be in for a rude shock this week? Meta have ahead of it, but that's- it’s good news from a government perspective.
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Oh. Look, we certainly welcome this action by Meta. This shows that they are taking it seriously. The obligation is not on families, parents, kids. It is on these social media companies, and so certainly this is good news that they're taking this seriously.
KARL STEFANOVIC: Okay, quickly, Sarrah.
SARRAH LE MARQUAND: I have a 14-year-old who's going to be very shocked, and I guess that's the whole point, isn't it? Job done, probably.
KARL STEFANOVIC: Yeah. Thank you, ladies. Appreciate it.