Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Every year, before the budget, I write to the Treasurer. Often, I sit down with the Treasurer and talk about the challenges in my community. This year as I compile my letter—a very lengthy letter, normally about seven pages—it struck me that I can talk about infrastructure, or the challenges of not being able to see a doctor, perhaps for weeks on end, or that desperate hope that many in my community have that, potentially, they will be bulk billed. That's like an elusive mirage! I could talk about all of those issues, particularly housing and the huge challenge that we have with even finding a house; people are renting out sheds or a room in somebody's house for an exorbitant fee. But it struck me that we can't address all of this unless we address migration and look at the massive migration we've had in this nation in the last couple of years.

I would draw to everyone's attention a report in the Australian newspaper today by Terry McCann, in the commentary section. He said that migration was more than half a million people net last year and that it's threatening to go even higher this year. This is affecting our access to doctors and to housing. It isn't simply a staggering number, it's that almost the population of Adelaide, the fifth-biggest city in this nation, has arrived over the last two years with respect to migration. Adelaide: with every house, every hospital, every road, power networks—everything. Think about the fact of building that in two years; we haven't done that in this nation and that's why we are under such enormous pressure from migration. Data released today showed a net increase of 55,330 migrants in January, the highest intake ever recorded and more than double the 21,000 from last year.

What we're seeing here is massive migration, despite the minister coming into the parliament and saying that he was aware of this. Last year the minister said that they would address migration. So I will write to the Treasurer and talk to the Treasurer about these challenges with housing, but unless we address migration in this nation we aren't going to improve the way of life for Australians. Dick Smith saw this over a decade ago with his book Dick Smith's Population Crisis. We are making life harder for Australians by creating this absolute hot pot with relation to migration. It's unnecessary, I think it's a dereliction of our duties in this place and we need to have a very serious and sober conversation about the Australia that we are creating.