Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Mr Deputy Speaker Coulton, you know how proud I am to be an Australian. Australia is the best country in the world. And I know I say that all the time, but that's because it's 100 per cent true. I know from the people I speak to in my electorate that I am not alone in saying that national security, citizenship and increased opportunities for Australians are all big issues that go right to my call. Any challenge, any potential threat whatsoever, to the Australia I know and love ignites my defences and my passion spills over. I take a firm stance on protecting our nation and values because, when I think of how lucky we are in Australia, I know it's no accident. Generations of Australians have fought for our freedom, and some have paid the ultimate price.

I was fortunate to represent the Minister for Defence, Marise Payne, recently at the conclusion of Exercise Talisman Sabre on board the USS Ronald Reagan when it was in Brisbane recently. The ship was impressive and the troops even more so, and I was humbled to be with such fine men and women. I was proud to hear many times that day of the high regard in which our troops are held by our United States allies.

Sadly, we were tragically reminded of the dangers these people face, even in training, when an MV-22 Osprey aircraft crashed in the Shoalwater Bay training area near Rockhampton this week, killing three US marines. I am sure I speak for all of us when I say our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the colleagues and families of those involved.

When our troops put their lives on the line, day in, day out, the least we can do is to come in to back them—to join them in their dedication and commitment to protecting Australia and Australians as a priority. And that's what we're doing with this bill, the Australian Citizenship Legislation Amendment (Strengthening the Requirements for Australian Citizenship and Other Measures) Bill 2017. It bolsters our approach to border protection and to counterterrorism, and it preserves the Australia we know and love for generations to come. The measures contained in the bill form part of the coalition government's response to the final report, Australian citizenship: your right, your responsibility, of the National Consultation on Citizenship conducted by Senator the Hon. Concetta Fierravanti-Wells and the Hon. Philip Ruddock in 2015. The national consultation on citizenship teased out some important issues and highlighted the extent to which the community values Australian citizenship. It demonstrated that Australians view citizenship in a much deeper sense than just what it offers in the way of formal privileges. The consultation showed the community sees Australian citizenship as a privilege that extends to Australians a stake in our future as a prosperous and diverse nation and in the values that underpin this.

We want new Australians to get that, to understand how much it means to us, and we want it to mean just as much to them. The coalition government makes no apologies for refusing to be drawn into compromise. I'm not the least bit sorry for the tough stance we take when it comes to who we invite to become an Australian. It's a privilege, not a right. Citizenship is a vital institution, and the national consultation adds even more voices to reviews that consistently show there's a sense in the community that in some parts of the country it's undervalued. That is certainly what I hear in the electorate from my constituents and it's not good enough.

Australian citizenship involves a commitment to Australia, its people and our shared values, and so it should. Australian citizenship, as I said before, is a privilege. So I welcome this bill as a way to ensure that we protect Australia, its values and people and that our approach is consistent with community view of the people that I represent and that we represent in this place that we need to get tougher.

The bill strengthens the requirements to become an Australian citizen, amending the act to increase the general residence requirement to require citizenship by conferral applicants to have been a permanent resident for at least four years before they are eligible to apply for citizenship. It gives a proper length of time. This is something the Leader of the Opposition has said in the past he supports. It is another issue he backflips on.

The bill also requires that most applicants will need to provide evidence of competent English language proficiency before they can make a valid application for citizenship. In his own words, the Leader of the Opposition says:

I think it is reasonable to look for English language proficiency and I think it is reasonable to have some period of time before you become an Australian citizen.

And it's not just the Opposition Leader singing from our songbook. His colleague who has just walked out of the chamber, the member for Watson, Tony Burke, was once on the right path. He told the Daily Telegraph, 'We need stricter English language requirements.' That's what he said, straight from his mouth. When he asked why is it that no-one is asked on these forms to commit to respecting Australian values and abiding by Australian laws, the member for Watson himself was spot-on. He said former Prime Minister John Howard's focus on the need for people living in Australia to learn English was spot on. That was from the member for Watson.

I love it when we agree, but unfortunately now we hear the member for Watson in this place rubbishing all that. 'It's not important. The English test is too hard.' The Leader of the Opposition and the member for Watson have traded good sense for hypocrisy. They are here one minute saying this and the next minute, when it comes to voting on legislation, saying, 'No, we disagree now.' We see this on so many different issues, whether it's same-sex marriage, whether it's company tax cuts, whether it's workplace relations and the Fair Work Commission. 'Respect their independent advice,' he says. He changes his mind regularly. This guy is a flip-flopper, and the Australian people are awake to him, as the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection so often says in this place.

What the member for Watson failed to say in his speech today is: yes, we're a multicultural country, but our main language that we speak here is English, and to get a job here in this country you need to be able to speak English, write English and understand English. I just think the member for Watson is saying one thing when he's in front of a TV camera in parts of Australia, and then when he's back in his own electorate he's somehow saying to his own multicultural Australian residents and permanent residents, 'Oh, this is no good.' What he should be saying is, 'We embrace you just as the government does, but we want you to learn English and comprehend English and we want you to be efficient in this so you can get a job and integrate into society.' The people in my electorate believe this as well; they regularly talk to me about this. The bill introduces measures that the opposition leader has publicly supported and improvements in English proficiency requirements that the member for Watson himself called for previously.

The Turnbull government reforms will ensure we honour not only those that fought and fight for our nation but also those who call our country home, by protecting Australians and the values that they hold dear. Requiring aspiring citizens to demonstrate both an ability and a willingness to integrate is fair enough, but it goes further than that. We know that English proficiency assists opportunities for new Australians. There is a good bank of research that shows social and economic outcomes are assisted by a good grasp of the language of a country you call home. As a new Australian, being proficient in English is crucial to finding a job, building a new life, thriving and prospering, which is what we want, after all, for all Australians, including new Australians. If you listen to Labor's lies, you'd be forgiven for thinking we're closing the door, but it's just not the case. What we want is to be able to offer opportunity for those who require it, a fresh start and a warm welcome, extending to them the rights and responsibilities that Australians all hold.

Australian citizens have responsibilities to respect the rights and liberties of the Australian community, uphold and obey Australia's laws and serve on juries. In order to do so, it helps to speak English and understand it well. Citizens hold the right to vote, to serve our country in the Australian Public Service or the Defence Force and to run for public office. These are important positions of privilege and influence, and I want to know who is in them.

Since September 2014, 13 terrorist plots have been disrupted, and it has been almost three years since a successful people-smuggling venture has arrived. The member for Burt went on before about people already having arrived here and how it would be the government's fault. He failed to mention that 50,000 illegal arrivals came to this country under Labor. It is illegal to pay a people smuggler to come to this country by boat. Let's not forget that. And what did the Labor government do? They gave more permanent residency, with very few checks. Maybe the member for Burt should have mentioned that when he spoke before.

I just want to acknowledge that there have been many government ministers that have been involved with the three years of success in making sure that people smugglers aren't able to come to this country: the Treasurer, the current Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, the justice minister and the Prime Minister. All of these people have done a good job in trying to make sure we maintain our Australian values and that we have sovereignty over who comes to this country. That's what residents that I represent want to make sure continues to happen. It is very important to them, and this strengthens it.

It's a shame that Labor isn't voting for this, by the sound of it. They should be, because this will help people better settle in here and it will make them be able to do that extra work in the four years that they're permanent residents before they become a citizen to be able to get that. Is that what the members opposite are saying, that four years is not enough time to be competent in English—to be able to speak it, to be able to write it, to be able to understand it?

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