Kate Lundy (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Sport and Recreation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Vanstone, the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. Is the minister aware of concerns about the operation of the 457 visa scheme in the IT industry? Is it the case that in June 2004 there were 5,000 foreign nationals working in the Australian IT industry—including 2,200 people younger than 30 years old with little or no prior work experience? Is it not also the case that around 2,000 locally trained IT graduates could not find full-time work in the industry? Isn’t this exactly what Dr Peter McDonald, who is the co-author of the ANU research which was released yesterday, meant when he said that we should consider the consequences of a policy of recruiting people on 457 visas at the same time as Australian graduates cannot get jobs? Or is it that the 457 visa program is so out of control that the minister is quite happy for employers to use these visas to hire cheaper, lower skilled temporary migrant workers instead of locally trained young Australian graduates?

Rod Kemp (Victoria, Liberal Party, Minister for the Arts and Sport) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Kemp interjecting—

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I acknowledge the interjection by Senator Kemp. He is now in the business of counting the number of times that the word ‘foreign’ is used. It is in fact foreign in Australia to keep using the term ‘foreign’ as a pejorative term for people who come from overseas, but this seems to be the Labor Party’s new tactic. We have shifted from a dog whistle to a foghorn. We have now got a Leader of the Opposition who tells Australian parents, ‘Watch out, the foreigners are coming to take your children’s jobs.’ If you are not ashamed of it, I am. You should be ashamed of it.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Paul Calvert (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! There are too many interjections, and I ask the minister to address her remarks through the chair.

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sorry, Mr President. When Mr Beazley says, ‘Watch out for your kids, because they will be humiliated by foreigners coming in and taking their jobs, and the foreigners will come from low-income countries,’ that is code for ‘not like us’. That is what he is trying to say: ‘Your kids will be dispensed with, because foreigners will come and take their jobs.’ That appears to be the only way the Labor Party thinks it can get any traction. I have got news for the Labor Party—

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Housing and Urban Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Carr interjecting—

Paul Calvert (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator Carr!

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A temporary lapse of judgement by Senator Carr—and an indication of that judgement is the fact that the newspapers say that he voted for Mr Latham. Now to the question of IT workers. IT workers are amongst a significant cohort of people in the 457 visa category. It is simply not true to assert, however, that people who come in on 457 visas are new graduates who know nothing. It is extraordinary to hear Senator Lundy suggest that people under 30 have almost no skills. I think Senator Lundy needs to get with the program and look at the fact that there are young people in the IT industry who most likely have more skills than older people.

Kate Lundy (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Sport and Recreation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. What does the minister plan to do to address the problems raised by Dr McDonald? Did the government fail to consider this issue when it axed the requirement for employers to demonstrate a local labour shortage before importing workers on 457 visas? Isn’t the minister’s failure to act now preventing young Australians from taking up employment opportunities in their chosen field?

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The answer to the last question is: certainly not. It is clearly understood by, I think, all the academics involved in immigration that immigration adds value to Australia. It adds to the economy and it secures Australian jobs. It helps us to build a better and better Australia. Senator Lundy must have been absent when I pointed out that the reason that labour market testing has gone is that a former Labor senator, Senator Bolkus, called for a report on this issue, and the industry and unions worked together and said, ‘Get rid of labour market testing for key activities.’ It was kept for key activities and gotten rid of for the rest of the area. Then, for key activities, we looked at it and said, ‘Isn’t a better test a salary level and a skill level test rather than whether the employer can advertise in places and make sure that they cannot pass that test?’

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Corporate Governance and Responsibility) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Wong interjecting—

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I hear Senator Wong interject. If Senator Wong can find a caravan park attendant—as in a completely unskilled worker—on a 457 visa, I would welcome her letting me know.

Nick Minchin (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance and Administration) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.