Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Nick Xenophon Team) Share this | Hansard source

The Nick Xenophon Team cannot support the Australian Citizenship Legislation Amendment (Strengthening the Requirements for Australian Citizenship and Other Measures) Bill 2017 in its current form. The government has not shared with us the critical documents that will allow us to properly consider the proposed changes. We have not received a copy of the Australian values statement that the minister proposes to introduce via legislative instrument, nor have we received examples of the sorts of tests, English or otherwise, that prospective citizens would be required to pass. We cannot support a bill without being provided with all the relevant information.

The Nick Xenophon Team is also particularly concerned about the very high bar that is being set for English language proficiency. We do not believe that it is reasonable or in the best interests of Australia if we are to continue to attract the best international talent to this country. The proposed IELTS band 6 English test requirement is higher than the entrance requirement for some Australian universities, and it's doubtful that many Australians who have English as their first language would ever be able to pass this test, let alone migrants who have English as their second or possibly third language.

The language proficiency requirements of comparable nations to Australia do not require higher-than-university-standard English. The United States, for example, requires an ability to read, write and speak simple words and phrases in ordinary usage in the English language. In Canada, applicants must be able to demonstrate adequate knowledge of English or French, for which acceptable evidence includes completing of a secondary or postsecondary language program, or achieving level 4 out of 12 in the Canadian Language Benchmark test. The sorts of things that a level 4 can do include 'understand short social exchanges containing introductions, casual small talk and leave-taking', 'give a set of simple, common, routine instructions and directions to a familiar person', and 'understand short descriptive or narrative communication on topics of personal relevance'.

Obviously a certain proficiency in English is necessary in order to enhance the contribution that every Australian and every new Australian can make to our country. You do need to be able to speak English in order to functionally communicate in this country—we understand that—and you need it to contribute meaningfully as an Australian citizen. But, as my colleague Senator Griff has said, many of us would know of migrants who have been amazing contributors to our community who have functional English but whose writing, grammar or spelling means that they would never be able to achieve the IELTS band 6 result. Furthermore, my colleague Senator Griff questioned whether all members of parliament would be able to pass such a test and said that they should also deeply consider whether their parents and grandparents would have been able to pass such a test—or, I might add, whether they would be able to pass the test now.

Increasing the language test threshold would also create the perverse outcome that Australia would lose prospective high-quality migrants, entrepreneurs, professionals and hard workers, who want to come here and could contribute so much to our migrant country. Don't get me wrong: there is no greater gift that a country can give to a person than citizenship, and it must be something that we respect, we value and we treasure. But, in the citizenship ceremonies that I participate in, I can tell you: the migrants in my community most definitely respect, value and treasure the citizenship that they are offered. In fact, our whole community respects, values and treasures this. They are celebration times in my community. One of my local mayors enjoys our citizenship ceremonies so much and sees them as such a celebration that she ensures that there is a professional photographer to take family pictures of people who are receiving their citizenship, and she even bakes Anzac biscuits for all of the people attending.

But I feel that a shadow has fallen over our community with this proposed legislation—certainly, there was not so much of a feeling of celebration at the last citizenship ceremony that I attended—and that is simply because of this legislation that is sitting here in this parliament. Australia has built its success on being a model, open society and, since the end of the White Australia policy, our country has drawn on the best talent from across the seas, not based on their skin colour, from people who seek to share in our democratic values—those values that make Australia a strong, pluralist and prosperous society.

My colleagues in the Senate reserve their position on this bill, but the Nick Xenophon Team, at this point, cannot support this bill in its current form.

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