Local families are feeling the pressure of Labor’s migration surge, with housing, roads, public transport, health care, and schools struggling to keep up.
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.
Senator for Victoria, Sarah Henderson, said communities right across Victoria are seeing the consequences.
“If you’re struggling to buy a home, find a rental or get the services you need in our community, Australia’s migration program matters to you,” Senator Henderson said.
“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.”
“Migration is important, but our migration program needs to be in the national interest and put Australia first,” Senator Henderson said.
The Liberals and Nationals’ Australia-First Migration Plan will cut net overseas migration to 100,000 a year for the first two years, before levelling out at around 160,000 in year four.
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,” Senator Henderson said.
“That means bringing in higher-skilled migrants, ending the guest-worker model, 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,” Senator Henderson said.
“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 all Australians including across Victoria.”
“I want Victorians to have the homes, roads, public transport, health care, and schools we need, and young people to have a real chance to own a home.”
“We need the right people, with the right skills, in numbers Australia can support,” Senator Henderson said.