Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Hansard source

It is not important who knew what when, what is more important is that 8,000 jobs are being created in the Pilbara. People who work in Western Australia or anywhere in Australia will have the first opportunity to apply for those jobs. Those 1,700 jobs will only be available for 457 visa holders if the operators have not been able source Australian employment.

My department will regularly audit Roy Hill. It will conduct six-monthly reviews to ensure that local recruitment activity is emphasised as the first opportunity. And why wouldn't Roy Hill want to employ Australians? Under the EMA, employing 457 holders is more expensive than employing Australians. We stipulate that market rates must apply and that the employer must pay the airfare to Australia and the airfare home when the 457 visa holder leaves. We make sure that that is not the course of least resistance. We make sure that employing 457 visa holders is available—it is an option—but it is not cheaper than employing Australians. That would be wrong. We are proud of the reforms we have made to the 457 visa program. We have increased worker protection. We have ensured that exploitation ceases. When those opposite were in office none of those protections applied.

I note the Leader of the Opposition made a speech a couple of weeks ago where he said that this government has made it harder to employ 457 visa holders. He is wrong. We have not made it harder, but we have made it fairer. We have ensured that protections apply. When the Leader of the Opposition says, 'We'll make it easier,' I want to know which protections is he going to rip up. Is it the English language requirements? Is it the protections against exploitation? Is it the requirement that market rates be paid? What are the conditions that this government has put on 457 visa holders that the opposition is going to rip up?

If the member for Cook is the minister for immigration one day, what proposal is he going to make to change the policy on 457 visa holders? That is what the Australian people deserve to know. There is great interest in 457 visas. People want to know what protections are in place. They know what protections are in place under this government. They know what measures are in place to ensure that Australians are employed first and that 457s are only used as a last resort. Let's see what they would be under the opposition. Let's make that clear. You have plenty of time: tell us what your policy is.

Enterprise migration agreements are something the opposition do not like because it is good news—good news for Australian workers, good news for the Australian economy. They do not like talking about good news; they have always got to go to the political pointscoring.

Mr Ian Macfarlane interjecting—

The member for Groom says he's loving it. I'm glad, because he is loving the creation of Australian jobs, if that is the case, because we are seeing a big project proceed that otherwise would not proceed.

This government will continue to ensure that a well-managed skilled migration program, whether it be permanent or temporary, creates jobs. A skilled migrant to Australia, whether they be permanent or temporary, can create jobs, not take jobs away from Australians. But it is important that we get the program right. It is important the program be well managed. It is important that an enterprise migration agreement be carefully considered. That is what this government did over many months. That is why the guidelines were issued in September, after consultation with the trade union movement and with the minerals sector.

There are some people who say that the enterprise migration agreements have too many protections in them. There are some people in the resources sector who say that. There are some people in the resources sector who say that I and the Minister for Resources and Energy have put in too many protections for workers. I do not agree. If they do not think that the enterprise migration agreement is for them, that is their right. It is available to them. But this government has ensured that protections are in place, that the enterprise migration agreement must be justified and that the enterprise migration agreement is calibrated to ensure Australian jobs are created. That will continue to be the case under this government. We will continue to negotiate with resources projects to deliver enterprise migration agreements which ensure that these projects can proceed and that unemployed people or people looking for an opportunity for a career in the resources sector—whether they be in the western suburbs of Sydney that I represent, whether they be in Queensland or Victoria, whether they be in Western Australia—have an opportunity for those jobs. It is an opportunity for the nation which we cannot afford to let go to waste. That is why we will continue to proceed with enterprise migration agreements and that is why we are very pleased that we have been able to announce in-principle agreement on the first enterprise migration agreement. For the opposition to talk about sovereign risk when we have delivered this enterprise migration agreement shows that they are only interested in political pointscoring when we are interested in creating jobs for Australians. (Time expired)

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