Immigration

In the debate surrounding immigration levels and population growth more broadly, the status quo is often described as normal, as if it were simply part of the natural order of things.

Last week saw Australia’s housing minister, Clare O’Neil, launch a propaganda campaign to distract voters from Labor’s housing failures.

I reported on Thursday how New Zealand’s rental growth has plummeted in response to the sharp decline in net overseas migration, which fell to only 10,628 in the year to August 2025, down from a decade average of 49,000.

In the debate surrounding Australian migration levels, the issue of New Zealanders coming to Australia under the bilateral agreement between the two nations is often brought up.

By Ross Elliott, cross-posted from The Pulse: A million people generate a lot of demand for things.

Recently, the level of migration has been a major source of controversy.

While the level of migration remains a hotly contested issue, from the nation’s halls of power to backyard BBQ debates, for the longest time, migration conceptually was considered a positive by a majority of the public.

Former senior immigration department bureaucrat Abul Rizvi posted an article in Independent Australia where he explained how the Albanese government secretly increased the permanent migrant intake well above the official published level. Rizvi showed how Labor “has significantly increased the size of permanent migration compared to the situation pre-pandemic (see Table 3)”.

This week, two polls were released showing that Australians overwhelmingly want significantly lower immigration.

While there are an increasing number of issues where the views and sensibilities of the public are entirely at odds with those of the political class, one issue arguably stands out where the perspectives of politicians and the electorate are in two entirely different postcodes: immigration.

Australia has the second-largest concentration of international students in the world, behind the tiny nation of Luxembourg.

The latest batch of rental data from Cotality and SQM Research suggests that Australia’s rental market has tightened.

It is critical to understand Australia’s immigration policy in a historical context. During the first 60 years following World War II, Australia’s net overseas migration (NOM) averaged 90,000 per year, with only two years exceeding 150,000.

As the debate over the impact of international students continues, the number of myths being repeated continues to grow, particularly on social media.

Recently, many Canadian commentators have noted that there was a growing gender imbalance in their nation’s younger demographics, well beyond what could be considered normal.

Under a series of treaties signed by the Australian and New Zealand governments, New Zealand citizens have the right to move to Australia and live there indefinitely under the Special Category Visa (SCV).

I reported this week on Jobs & Skills Australia’s (JSA) latest study on the international education sector, which admitted that the primary motivation for international students to choose Australia is to obtain work rights and permanent residency.

In October 2024, then Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged to dramatically cut net migration into Canada.

Everything I have written about Australia’s student-migration scam has been confirmed by the latest study on the international education sector by Jobs & Skills Australia (JSA).

Recently, Japan has witnessed a growing backlash against immigration, accompanied by protests and increasing levels of frustration on Japanese social media.

“Stubborn empty nesters” refusing to downsize from their family-friendly homes have become Australia’s latest housing scapegoat.

It is essential to understand Australia’s immigration policy within its historical context. During the first 60 years following World War II, Australia’s net overseas migration (NOM) averaged 90,000 per year, with only two years exceeding 150,000.