Adam Bandt (Melbourne, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship. Tens of thousands of jobs have been lost in south-eastern states in recent months, especially in manufacturing, due in large part to pressures from the mining boom, like the high Australian dollar. In my electorate there are many people who have lived in Australia for years and now call this country home. Many of them are desperately seeking meaningful work. Why aren't recently retrenched workers in the unemployed and underemployed category going to the head of the queue for jobs on mining and resource projects, and why can billionaires like Gina Rinehart set our immigration policy and avoid having to employ locals?

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