Collins Comments

Judith Collins Clevedon
August 2005

Immigration

If we as a country continue to allow standards in education to slip, over-tax, over-regulate, waste scarce taxpayer money on bureaucracy rather than frontline services in education and health, to allow Treaty-related political correctness to undermine race relations in this country, we will continue to see New Zealanders migrate to Australia.

600 New Zealanders a week make the move across the Tasman. This is the equivalent of losing over three quarters of the population of Papakura each year. If we don’t make necessary changes in direction then this outflow will continue and accelerate, as it has over the past year.

National’s immigration policy offers a disciplined approach; it is a responsible middle ground of “managed immigration”.

Key components of National’s policy:

- National will focus priority on skilled migrants, with greater recognition of proven work experience in areas of skill shortage.

- National will introduce a four-year qualification period of Provisional Residence for all new migrants. Residency will be dependent of good conduct.

- We will extend the benefit stand-down period from two years to four years. In welcoming new migrants to our country, the expectation should be that they will be independent of taxpayer support.

- A National Government will merge the New Zealand Immigration Service and the Citizenship Office into a new Department of Citizenship and Immigration, properly resourced and managed.

- We will require Family Stream sponsors to be able to demonstrate that they are able to fulfill all sponsorship obligations for the four-year benefit stand down period.

- National will reduce the refugee and families quota to be a total of 750.

- We will require business migrants to create at least two permanent full-time jobs for non-family members.

- National will require English language skills from business and investor migrants that are appropriate to the nature of their experience and proposed business.

Instead of immigration adding interesting diversity, skills and energy to our society, under current policies immigration has become a process which is threatening to change the very nature of our society. Ultimately immigration policy should be about building a society that our children will choose to live in.

Orere School

I was invited to visit Orere School this week. I met with the Principal, Staff and Board of Trustees, who were all extremely positive and proud of their school and students. There was a fabulous learning environment and family feel to this school. Well done to their netball team, that recently competed against six other schools and won 4 out of 5 games. Considering there are 32 students at this school that is a fantastic achievement.

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ENDS

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