PRIVATE MEMBERS' BUSINESS
Mr SMALL (Forrest—Opposition Whip) (17:53): On World Refugee Day we recognise Australia as a place of hope; a country defined by stability, the rule of law, equality and justice, where those fleeing conflict and persecution around the world can rebuild their lives in safety. As the member just outlined, these are people who have endured loss, uncertainty and hardship unimaginable to most Australians, yet they still hold on to hope—for safety, for opportunity and for a better life.
Australia has long been a country that answers that with the outreach of friendship. Since the end of the World War II, our nation has welcomed more than one million refugees and humanitarian entrants to our shores, over one million people given a second chance to build a new life and a new home. Right now, that confidence is under pressure, because Australians can see that migration levels have surged at the same time that housing supply has fallen behind.
They see that in our communities, with strain on rents, the difficulties for first home buyers and the strain on infrastructure in growing communities. Those who are waiting in the back of an ambulance trying to get into hospitals or on waiting lists for schools understand that our ability to welcome people to Australia depends on the availability of that social infrastructure to ensure that when they come here they will have a life ready for them.
Australians today are asking a fair question: how can we continue to welcome people to Australia if we can't guarantee a home for them or indeed for the Australians who are already here? That's where leadership matters. A strong humanitarian program is inherent in the DNA of Australians.
We believe in offering refuge to those who are most in need. But, as I said, we believe that migration must be tied to reality, and that means tying the overall migration program to housing supply, because you can't separate the two. If we bring people to Australia through all migration streams without building the homes to support them, we're not setting those individuals or indeed our communities up for success.
We risk overcrowding. We risk pushing housing further out of reach for Australians. And we risk eroding the very public support that makes our generous humanitarian program possible in the first place.
That's not compassionate policy; it is careless policy. Compassion is not just about how many people we bring in. It is about ensuring that those we do welcome to Australia are supported to become proud and contributing Australians themselves.
A truly compassionate system ensures that when someone comes to Australia they're not competing for scarce housing, they're not pushed to the margins of our society and they're not doomed to struggle. Rather, they are welcomed into a community that has the capacity to support them—a community with homes, infrastructure and opportunity that abounds. That's why our Liberal plan has always focused on restoring the balance in our migration system, reducing the pressure on social infrastructure by aligning migration arrivals of all types, including that very important humanitarian program, with housing construction completions in Australia.
There are so many proud stories of Australian refugees who have come to our shores from unimaginable horror. They found in this place a welcoming new home that allowed them to build families of their own, to contribute by building businesses, investing and ultimately achieving success that would never have been possible but for the generosity of spirit that Australia has long demonstrated to people from all over the world.
The continuation of that success story depends on rational, sensible policy that upholds the confidence of the Australian people in that their government will welcome to our shores only those whom it can accommodate sensibly. When people trust that migration is being managed properly they are willing to keep opening their hearts and their country to those in need, and that is what we should continue to want for our country.