Australians happy with immigration: survey

"A national survey on social cohesion shows the majority of Australians support the current immigration intake."

Survey author Professor Andrew Markus from Monash University says
the findings showed a positive response to Australia's immigration
policy.

This survey is a wonderful thing, as the good professor suggests later in this article from the ABC,

"96 per cent of respondents at the national level, so that's nearly
everybody, has a strong sense of belonging in Australia and that is a
very, very strong finding and very positive finding for this society."

I agree that is a wonderful and welcome piece of news.

What the survey also shows is the gross ignorance and carelessness of governments at both National and State and Territory levels.

I have a problem with a government which must be patting itself on the back for a job well done about immigration, but not thinking through the consequences of welcoming so many new people into the country each year WITHOUT it seems also considering what impact those people will have on existing infrastructure and services.

When you add to this potential misery the former treasurer Mr Costello urging Australians to increase the population with calls for having at least three children, "one for mum, one for dad and one for the country," we have a problem of national proportions that I do NOT see anyone recognising or planning for or taking any action about.

If someone was silly enough to leave the management of the consequences to the "market" then they are not only silly they are positively dangerous!

We realise that we need skilled immigrants to enable our society to cope with the work that is required by our expanded mining activities and elsewhere. We also realise that we need to increase the population by encouraging people who are already resident in Australia to have more children.

I applaud the rationale and I applaud the policies and their administration, but when will someone link these policies and practices to the levels of housing shortage, the high levels of housing unaffordability and the increased levels of mortgage stress?

When will governments realise that the need for childcare centres and additional school places, increases in the means of transport, health etc etc are all consequences of a policy and program of increasing population growth.

The reality is that when you increase the population to meet a shortage of workers for the current economy you also have to think through the consequences of your policies - especially if they work well!

In this case we have a large influx of people and their families into the country and we have also an increase in the size of families already in country.

This mass of people require a whole range to things to enable them to settle and to take up the work opportunities which are current in the economy.

Has anyone actually thought through what these people will need and what impact those needs will have on existing infrastructure and services in the community and even more to the point has anyone planned to meet their needs?

If not, then the racial tolerance that we have in our society at present is not going to last very long.

Get with it Australia - people and their families have needs, since it is up to State and Territory governments to meet those service delivery needs, there is an urgent need for joint policy and planning outcomes to occur to enable State and Territory governments to cope with the influx of new people coming into their bailiwick and the impact that their arrival will have on existing services.

When we hear about the transport system groaning under the weight of new demands, hospitals and health systems being unable to cope and we immediately think of bad management or slack staff or . . .

Does anyone actually consider it's because we have invited people to come and settle in this country and because we have invited parents to increase the population and then NOT thought through the consequences of these decisions

To cope with these massive growth in population each year and also to cope with the changing demographics that extended families and the growth in the aging population in Australia as the "baby boomers reach retirement age, government should be planning to change and increase the service delivery capabilities in education, health, child care, transport, water, sewerage, housing, waste disposal etc etc.

You can;t just open the doors to refugees and immigrants as well as increase the existing population and then expect the place to absorb all these additions and changes somehow without there being an impact on infrastructure and services.

Could someone in government PLEASE stop sleeping on the job?