Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I did hear some yelling from the other side that we would not give them the data and we would not tell them what came in. I can tell you this: in the 2005-06 visa grants to principal applicants—and if Senator Evans wants to be the leader, he has to know what question to ask; he cannot come in with data that he does not understand, ask a question about it and expect to get an answer that is meaningful when he does not understand the data—the occupation that came in in highest number was that of registered nurse, and 2,530 of them came in. Computing professionals came in. There were 2,270. There were business and information professionals—1,430; general medical practitioners—980; and chefs—960. On it goes.

If the opposition want to ask what visas have been given to principal applicants then that is the question they should ask in order to get the information. What they cannot do is come in with data that they simply do not understand and assert that these people are the primary applicants that are brought in for the purpose of working. Of course, it is true that someone’s spouse is entitled to a job, and they may not work in the most highly skilled areas. But, more particularly, any leader ought to know, when there is an asterisk that says, ‘Take care,’ that that is what you ought to do.

I am tempted to misuse data myself. In 1996 some parliamentarians were on this list. They must have come in as spouses. You might think, ‘What was the skills shortage there?’ There is a skills shortage in a leader who understands the question. (Time expired)