Julie-Ann Campbell (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Warringah for bringing this important motion to the House today. It speaks directly to one of the core strengths of my culturally diverse community, on the south side of Brisbane, and of multiculturalism and all of the wonderful festivals, traditions, foods, languages and celebrations that that word evokes.

However, the motion also reflects something more sombre: the need for some parts of our society to be reminded about the power of language—the power of language, in this case, to harm and to divide. There is no doubt that Australia is a multicultural success story. We are a nation proud of our diversity, and we are made up of a rich tapestry of cultures. The challenge we have right now is that people are seeking to pull at the threads of that tapestry. When Australian communities are blamed for people's and society's challenges, it deepens divisions. It diminishes the important and hardworking contributions that migrant communities have made, over—as the member for Fairfax would say—scores and scores of years. It strikes at their work.

None of these sentiments were in evidence at the four most recent local Australia Day citizenship ceremonies I attended. These joyous occasions were full of optimism. They were full of pride. They were full of commitment. They were full of enthusiasm. And they were full of patriotism. I want to say that patriotism is not for the exclusive use of those who sit opposite, because patriotism does not see skin colour; patriotism does not see religion. Patriotism does not see those things. Patriotism sees only the love of this country, of Australia, and every new citizen, at each of those ceremonies, had it in absolute spades.

It is that approach that so many migrants bring to starting things, and to supporting and sustaining our economy—particularly our small businesses. In fact, the positive impact these communities have on Australia's economy is significant. The Australian Industry Group states that migrants fill critical roles across key industries such as health care, construction, information technology and education, addressing skills shortages and enhancing the nation's productivity.

This government's approach to migration has been to ensure that policies genuinely serve the country's long-term interests and skills needs and drive the national interest. We are guided by the migration strategy which was released in December 2023, and this drew on the conclusions of the Nixon review. It outlined 44 new and existing policy commitments, along with areas flagged for future reform. Labor is taking deliberate and responsible steps to repair the dysfunctional system that we inherited from those opposite, and this means restoring integrity; it means strengthening safeguards and guiding the system back to a sustainable level.

Crucially, we've already delivered the majority of the strategy's reforms and this includes establishing the national innovation visa to support growth in industries of national significance. It also includes rolling out the new skills in demand visa, which features a core skills pathway designed to meet specific workforce needs and a specialist skills pathway to support innovation in order to generate new jobs.

When you consider that Australia is such a special place, it's important to remember that it's home to the world's oldest continuing culture and that over half of all Australians were born overseas or had a parent who was born overseas. Some of us, like my family, can trace our migrant roots back to the 1800s. I've heard Australia described as a melting pot and I've heard it described as a mixed salad. But whatever analogy you choose to use, it's recognition that there are myriad histories, languages and cultural traditions that form the Australian story. This is something to celebrate. Our community has been made all the stronger and all the more resilient because of it. This is in the national interest.

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