11 April 2019

A new report on population and immigration is clear proof Australia’s mainstream political parties are ignoring the wishes of the overwhelming majority of the Australian people, according to the environmental advocacy group Sustainable Population Australia (SPA).

“The Australian Population Research Institute (TAPRI) report’s finding that 72 per cent of Australians believe Australia does not need more people is in line with similar findings from numerous other surveys in recent years,” says the national president of SPA, Ms Sandra Kanck.

“The new survey shows this view is shared by a large majority of voters across all political parties, and yet all the mainstream parties (coalition, Labor and the Greens) are in lockstep, ignoring Australians’ deep concerns about rapid population growth.

“The survey shows both overseas-born and Australian-born citizens equally favour lower immigration. They overwhelmingly perceive population growth as putting pressure on hospitals, housing, jobs, the environment, roads and schools.”

Ms Kanck says the findings show Australians understand that the greatest beneficiaries of this population growth are property developers, big business, employers, and even the migrants themselves – rather than ordinary Australians.

“What is truly innovative in this survey are the findings about the links between people’s opinions and their level of knowledge,” she says. “The findings show that citizens who are the most informed about population facts are much more likely to support lower immigration levels (68 per cent versus 50 per cent for the total sample), and to believe Australia does not need more people (85 per cent versus 72 per cent for the total sample).

“Those most informed about population and immigration issues are not necessarily university educated. In fact, graduates scored lower than non-graduates on demographic knowledge!”

“What this suggests is that, to the extent that university graduates are more likely to support more immigration and population growth, this may be due more to ideology than factual analysis.”

Ms Kanck says her organisation (SPA) calls for a much more truthful and comprehensive debate of population and immigration issues – free from knee-jerk accusations of racism.

“It is a pity that Australians are not being offered real choice at the ballot box,” says Ms Kanck. “Sustainable Population Australia encourages all voters to look carefully at minor parties and independents, some of whom offer sensible, non-racist policies for low immigration.”

The full TAPRI report can be found here: https://tapri.org.au/…/Tapri-survey-2018-final-report-April…