Go Kristina, again at The Australian, the new home of woke:
Kristina Keneally has refused to back down on calling for cuts to migration, repeating claims that the coronavirus is exposing the fact that “Australia is heavily relying on temporary migration that often results in workers being exploited.” Speaking on ABC Radio National, Ms Keneally added that the issue “does not need to be, and is not, an attack on the individual people that come to Australia for work.”
Opposition spokesman for treasury Jim Chalmers on Tuesday revealed he was aware that Ms Keneally would write the op-ed calling for a cut in migration, saying the issue of migration has been an “appropriate” topic of debate within Labor ranks during the course of the pandemic.
“There has been a conversation that’s happened behind the scenes in our team, for some weeks now, Mr Chalmers told ABC News Breakfast.
“I think it’s a conversation that’s appropriate at a time when the flow has largely stopped. We need to work out what’s the optimal settings for Australia when it restarts again.
“It’s about the mix between temporary and permanent migrants. It’s about making sure that we have the training settings right to fill the skills shortages in the economy and making sure temporary workers aren’t exploited.”
Bravo! What a spectacle as the Murdoch Press goes full political correctness to protect its real estate profits.
Famed racist, Penny Wong, is on board as well, at The Guardian:
Penny Wong has defended Kristina Keneally over her call for a reduction in temporary migration, saying her Labor colleague was merely underlining the opposition’s long-held concerns about worker exploitation.
Labor’s immigration spokeswoman has been accused of dog whistling and has faced internal criticism from some within Labor after she wrote an opinion piece for the Nine newspapers on Sunday.
Expanding on a warning in January about the risk of an underclass, the senator wrote that Australia’s “increasing reliance” on “cheap supply of overseas, temporary labour” undercut wages “for Australian workers and takes jobs Australians could do”.
The Labor MP Anne Aly and Bob Carr, a former NSW premier and foreign minister, both cautioned about the use of Australia-first rhetoric on Monday, while Pauline Hanson claimed the piece had vindicated her own positions.
Even the pansified ACTU is on board with the Labor shift:
Too many employers had been using the temp visa system to avoid hiring locals & to exploit people whose visa status & security depended on their employer. The result has been serious & systemic wage theft https://t.co/a07XIwI6ac
— Sally McManus (@sallymcmanus) May 3, 2020
Or not:
Nearly one million workers are excluded from all support during this pandemic. This could and should be fixed today by the Government. #NoWorkerLeftBehind pic.twitter.com/Yjy5ROjFUR
— Sally McManus (@sallymcmanus) May 4, 2020
McManus should get fully on board or quit. She’s done more damage to workers on this issue than just about anybody.
This is shaping as a broad policy shift for Labor. It can drive a wedge deep into the Government and its Murdoch propaganda arm if it continues.
All in the national interest.
